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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  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. object — to protest
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chest — of your body
  5. squash — the sport
  6. chest — of your body
  7. fork — in a road
  8. chair — a leader
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. object — an aim
  13. chest — a box
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. cell — a phone
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. squash — to crush
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. cell — in biology
  22. bark — to shout
  23. object — a thing
  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