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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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. roll — a cake
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. bore — to drill
  7. scale — size or range
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. bore — to tire
  10. drill — a practice
  11. chest — a box
  12. scale — in music
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bear — the animal
  15. tear — to rip
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. chest — of your body
  19. roll — a list
  20. drill — army training
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. tear — from crying
  24. coach — a trainer

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