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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 120 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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. bore — to tire
  4. perch — the fish
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. ground — a position
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. march — music
  9. drill — the tool
  10. ground — the earth
  11. firm — a company
  12. wind — moving air
  13. firm — decided
  14. drill — army training
  15. drill — a practice
  16. ground — crushed
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wind — moving air
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bore — to drill
  21. march — the month
  22. firm — steady
  23. march — the month
  24. perch — for a bird

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