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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 116 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 · shower · stick · drill · spell · bowl · bay · march

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. spell — letters
  3. march — music
  4. spell — magic
  5. bore — to drill
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — the tool
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. spell — a short time
  15. march — the month
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. drill — army training
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. march — the month
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. shower — to wash
  23. shower — rain
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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