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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. bass — low music
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. march — the month
  8. pound — a weight
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. bat — the animal
  13. content — happy
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. content — the amount
  16. chest — a box
  17. bore — to tire
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bass — the fish
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. chest — of your body
  24. fan — a supporter

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