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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: bowl · bore · stem · pitcher · pound · clip · nail · sharp

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. stem — to come from
  3. bore — to tire
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. clip — to cut
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. sharp — clever
  17. clip — for paper
  18. pound — a weight
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. bore — to drill
  24. clip — a video

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