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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 120 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: pitch · wind · coach · kid · land · bore · mine · wake

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. land — ground
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. bore — to tire
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. land — a country
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. wake — a trail
  15. mine — for digging
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. wind — moving air
  19. kid — child
  20. pitch — completely
  21. wind — moving air
  22. kid — to tease
  23. land — to come down
  24. wake — before a funeral

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