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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: bore · nail · pound · kid · perch · row · scale · ground

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. ground — the earth
  3. bore — to tire
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. kid — child
  9. scale — in music
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. kid — to tease
  14. row — a line
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. pound — a weight
  20. row — to paddle
  21. scale — size or range
  22. bore — to drill
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. ground — crushed

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