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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. prune — to trim
  3. drill — army training
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. can — a tin
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. race — the arms race
  12. race — humankind
  13. drill — the tool
  14. drill — a practice
  15. prune — to trim
  16. can — to be able to
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. race — a contest
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. bore — to drill
  24. can — a tin

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