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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 116 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 · nail · chair · hide · capital · vault · pound

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. drill — army training
  7. drill — the tool
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. bore — to tire
  10. capital — a city
  11. chair — a leader
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. drill — a practice
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. bore — to drill
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. vault — a safe
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. capital — money
  24. capital — a big letter

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