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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 120 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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  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. bore — to tire
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. court — of a king
  5. court — of law
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. bass — the fish
  9. court — for sport
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bass — low music
  12. pound — a weight
  13. scale — in music
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bat — the animal
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. scale — size or range
  23. pitcher — a jug
  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