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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 116 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's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. drill — a practice
  3. band — a music group
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. band — a ring
  6. track — a song
  7. track — a path
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. track — to keep track
  10. press — to push
  11. drill — the tool
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. bore — to tire
  14. saw — the tool
  15. press — newspapers
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — the fish
  18. bore — to drill
  19. drill — army training
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. press — a publisher
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. band — a rubber band

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