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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 116 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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bore — to drill
  3. cap — of ice
  4. pop — to visit
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — help
  8. pit — a hole
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. bat — the animal
  11. pop — soda
  12. bore — to tire
  13. pop — music
  14. pit — in a race
  15. hand — in cards
  16. shower — rain
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. cap — a lid
  21. cap — a hat
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. shower — to wash

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