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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: march · chair · rock · nail · saw · cabinet · squash · bore

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. chair — a leader
  4. saw — the tool
  5. march — music
  6. bore — to drill
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. rock — music
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. squash — to crush
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. rock — a stone
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. saw — the tool
  20. march — the month
  21. bore — to tire
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. march — the month
  24. cabinet — ministers

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