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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bear · trunk · press · kid · ruler · drill

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. kid — to tease
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bear — the animal
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. drill — a practice
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. press — a publisher
  10. kid — child
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. bear — the animal
  14. press — newspapers
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. drill — army training
  17. press — to push
  18. ruler — for measuring

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