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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 · coach · shower · bore · row · pitcher · squash · arm

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. drill — a practice
  4. shower — to wash
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. squash — to crush
  12. bore — to drill
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. row — to paddle
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — a line
  19. bore — to tire
  20. squash — the sport
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. drill — the tool
  23. shower — rain
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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