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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 120 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: coach · sharp · bore · bark · fork · rush · ground · chest

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. bore — to tire
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — a box
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. rush — hurry
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. fork — in a road
  13. bark — to shout
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. ground — a position
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. sharp — clever
  20. chest — of your body
  21. ground — the earth
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. ground — crushed

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