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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: band · bore · object · chair · row · staff · drill · roll

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. bore — to tire
  3. band — a ring
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. drill — the tool
  9. roll — a cake
  10. band — a music group
  11. row — to paddle
  12. staff — employees
  13. roll — a list
  14. chair — a leader
  15. drill — army training
  16. object — a thing
  17. object — to protest
  18. staff — a stick
  19. bore — to drill
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. staff — employees
  22. row — a line
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. drill — a practice

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