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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. drill — the tool
  3. drill — army training
  4. race — humankind
  5. root — the cause
  6. chest — of your body
  7. scale — size or range
  8. drill — a practice
  9. spell — a short time
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — the arms race
  12. bore — to drill
  13. clip — a video
  14. root — of a plant
  15. clip — for paper
  16. root — of a word
  17. chest — a box
  18. spell — letters
  19. spell — magic
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. clip — to cut
  22. scale — in music
  23. bore — to tire
  24. bore — gave birth

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