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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. march — the month
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. bore — to drill
  13. wound — an injury
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. march — music
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. march — the month
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — a tool
  20. chair — a leader
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bark — to shout

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