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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. ground — crushed
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. bore — to drill
  5. perch — the fish
  6. branch — a division
  7. march — the month
  8. march — the month
  9. hand — in cards
  10. ground — the earth
  11. march — music
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. hand — help
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bore — to tire
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. tube — a container
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. saw — the tool
  24. ground — a position

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