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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · row · file · bore · stock · chair · bulb · hand

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. bulb — for light
  4. row — a line
  5. file — a tool
  6. row — to paddle
  7. file — a document
  8. degree — temperature
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stock — goods
  11. hand — in cards
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. chair — a leader
  16. bore — to tire
  17. stock — shares
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. degree — from a university
  22. bore — to drill
  23. degree — an amount
  24. bulb — for light

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