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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: bore · drill · present · root · tube · row · cold · cap

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. row — a line
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. tube — a container
  7. cold — not warm
  8. drill — army training
  9. drill — the tool
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. present — the time now
  13. tube — the underground
  14. bore — to drill
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bore — to tire
  17. root — of a plant
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. cap — of ice
  20. present — there
  21. present — a gift
  22. root — the cause
  23. drill — a practice
  24. root — of a word

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