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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 116 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: nail · pit · bore · drill · degree · ground · present · trunk

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. drill — army training
  5. degree — from a university
  6. degree — temperature
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. pit — a hole
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. bore — to drill
  11. present — there
  12. drill — a practice
  13. ground — the earth
  14. ground — a position
  15. present — a gift
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. ground — crushed
  20. present — the time now
  21. drill — the tool
  22. pit — in a race
  23. degree — an amount
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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