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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: chair · hand · drill · bore · mine · pitch · ground · trunk

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. drill — the tool
  4. chair — a leader
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bore — to drill
  7. ground — a position
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. mine — for digging
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hand — help
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. ground — the earth
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. ground — crushed
  21. drill — army training
  22. bore — to tire
  23. pitch — completely
  24. bore — gave birth

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