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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: object · row · game · hand · prune · chair · leaves · bore

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — to drill
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. row — a line
  6. hand — in cards
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. row — to paddle
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. chair — a leader
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. object — a thing
  14. game — wild animals
  15. prune — to trim
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. hand — help
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. object — an aim
  24. object — to protest

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