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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: drill · chair · arm · pit · snap · bore · spring · track

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. drill — army training
  3. track — a song
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. snap — to click
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. pit — in a race
  9. chair — a leader
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. drill — the tool
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. drill — a practice
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. spring — the season
  17. bore — to tire
  18. track — a path
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. track — to keep track
  21. bore — to drill
  22. spring — of water
  23. spring — a coil
  24. pit — a hole

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