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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: nail · fine · last · calf · mine · bore · pitcher · mark

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. last — finally
  6. fine — all right
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. fine — high quality
  9. last — to go on
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. mark — a trace
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. bore — to drill
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mark — a grade
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bore — to tire
  24. mine — for digging

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