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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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Word bank
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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: pit · staff · content · board · pitcher · tear · squash · drill

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. board — a committee
  3. pit — in a race
  4. tear — from crying
  5. board — to get on
  6. squash — the sport
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. drill — army training
  11. squash — to crush
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pit — a hole
  14. tear — from crying
  15. staff — a stick
  16. drill — the tool
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. staff — employees
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. drill — a practice
  22. content — happy
  23. content — the amount
  24. tear — to rip

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