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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: drill · bore · court · shower · race · pitch · march · lean

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. pitch — completely
  3. shower — rain
  4. march — the month
  5. bore — to tire
  6. march — the month
  7. lean — to bend
  8. drill — a practice
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — thin
  12. drill — the tool
  13. court — for sport
  14. march — music
  15. bore — to drill
  16. race — a contest
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. race — humankind
  20. shower — to wash
  21. court — of a king
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. race — the arms race
  24. drill — army training

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