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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · row · degree · spell · pitcher · arm · capital · tear

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. tear — from crying
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — a line
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. degree — temperature
  11. spell — letters
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. degree — an amount
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. spell — a short time
  17. capital — money
  18. row — to paddle
  19. tear — to rip
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. capital — a city
  22. degree — from a university
  23. tear — from crying
  24. spell — magic

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