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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 120 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: pitcher · club · last · staff · bound · content · bore · rest

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. last — to go on
  3. last — finally
  4. club — a group
  5. bore — to tire
  6. staff — employees
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. content — the amount
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bore — to drill
  12. last — final
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. rest — what's left
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. content — happy
  17. staff — a stick
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. bound — certain
  20. club — for golf
  21. staff — employees
  22. rest — a break
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bound — obliged

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