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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: cabinet · bore · rock · capital · bark · rash · clip · pitcher

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. bore — to drill
  3. clip — a video
  4. capital — a city
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. clip — for paper
  7. rash — hasty
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. clip — to cut
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. rock — music
  13. rock — a stone
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. rash — a series
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. bark — to shout
  22. capital — money
  23. pitcher — a jug
  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