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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: bore · firm · pitcher · scale · temple · land · last · drill

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. drill — army training
  3. drill — the tool
  4. land — to come down
  5. last — to go on
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. bore — to drill
  8. land — ground
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. land — a country
  11. last — finally
  12. last — final
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. drill — a practice
  15. scale — in music
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. bore — to tire
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. scale — size or range
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. firm — steady
  23. firm — a company
  24. firm — decided

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