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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. bore — to tire
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. bass — the fish
  7. kid — to tease
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. spell — a short time
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. bore — to drill
  14. spell — magic
  15. drill — army training
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. kid — child
  18. bass — low music
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. drill — a practice
  21. chair — a leader
  22. drill — the tool
  23. spell — letters
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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