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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — army training
  3. bore — to drill
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. firm — a company
  6. wound — an injury
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. firm — steady
  9. pound — a weight
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. bark — to shout
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. drill — a practice
  14. sharp — clever
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wound — an injury
  17. firm — decided
  18. bore — to tire
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — temperature
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. pound — for dogs

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com