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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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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: kick · shower · perch · bowl · bore · pop · pound · cold

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. pop — soda
  3. perch — the fish
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. pound — a weight
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. shower — to wash
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. shower — rain
  14. pop — to visit
  15. cold — an illness
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bore — to tire
  18. pop — music
  19. cold — not warm
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. kick — in football
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. perch — for a bird

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