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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: bore · chest · drill · key · present · tube · wax · lash

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. chest — a box
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. drill — a practice
  6. key — for a lock
  7. wax — to grow
  8. key — in music
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. bore — to tire
  13. key — the most important part
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. present — there
  16. bore — to drill
  17. tube — the underground
  18. chest — of your body
  19. present — the time now
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. tube — a container
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  24. bore — gave birth

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