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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. prune — to trim
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. band — a ring
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. field — a subject
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. prune — to trim
  13. band — a music group
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. field — for sport
  16. plane — a tool
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. wind — moving air
  22. field — farmland
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bore — to tire

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