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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. bore — to drill
  3. suit — clothes
  4. clip — to cut
  5. clip — for paper
  6. kick — in football
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. march — music
  9. suit — in cards
  10. suit — to fit
  11. drill — a practice
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. bore — to tire
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. drill — army training
  17. scale — in music
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. scale — size or range
  22. clip — a video
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cell — in biology

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