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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: deal · march · bore · spring · file · drill · can · perch

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. march — the month
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. drill — army training
  5. can — a tin
  6. file — a tool
  7. drill — the tool
  8. can — a tin
  9. can — to be able to
  10. bore — to drill
  11. file — a document
  12. perch — the fish
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. bore — to tire
  16. deal — to handle
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. spring — of water
  19. march — the month
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. drill — a practice
  22. file — a line of people
  23. march — music
  24. spring — the season

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