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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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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: drill · chest · rash · club · bore · bowl · fine · clip

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. clip — for paper
  3. club — for golf
  4. fine — all right
  5. clip — to cut
  6. drill — the tool
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. fine — high quality
  11. bore — to tire
  12. chest — a box
  13. rash — a series
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bore — to drill
  17. drill — army training
  18. club — a group
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. clip — a video
  23. rash — hasty
  24. drill — a practice

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