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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: march · bore · racket · court · drill · pop · staff · patient

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bore — to drill
  3. drill — the tool
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — employees
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. pop — to visit
  8. bore — to tire
  9. court — of a king
  10. march — music
  11. pop — soda
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. staff — a stick
  16. drill — army training
  17. court — of law
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. pop — music
  20. drill — a practice
  21. march — the month
  22. court — for sport
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. racket — for tennis

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