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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. board — a committee
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. foot — a measure
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. firm — decided
  8. firm — steady
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — to tire
  12. firm — a company
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. board — to get on
  15. row — a line
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bat — the animal
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. row — to paddle
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. tube — a container

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