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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: bark · fine · pitcher · nail · bore · cold · branch · dip

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. cold — not warm
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. bore — to tire
  12. dip — to sink
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bore — to drill
  17. fine — high quality
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. branch — a division
  20. fine — all right
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. cold — an illness

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