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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: bat · tube · drill · safe · bore · file · pop · arm

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. bore — to drill
  4. tube — a container
  5. pop — to visit
  6. bore — to tire
  7. bat — the animal
  8. pop — music
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. file — a line of people
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. tube — the underground
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. drill — a practice
  18. drill — army training
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. drill — the tool
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a document

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