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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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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: net · rest · bore · pound · band · last · kick · chair

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. last — to go on
  3. bore — to drill
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. net — for catching
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. bore — to tire
  10. band — a music group
  11. pound — a weight
  12. last — final
  13. net — after costs
  14. last — finally
  15. rest — what's left
  16. chair — a leader
  17. rest — what's left
  18. band — a ring
  19. kick — in football
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. net — in sport
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. kick — with a leg

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