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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: chair · field · tear · drill · cue · bore · club · file

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. file — a line of people
  3. drill — a practice
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. field — farmland
  7. cue — a hint
  8. bore — to tire
  9. drill — the tool
  10. drill — army training
  11. cue — for pool
  12. field — for sport
  13. club — a group
  14. field — a subject
  15. tear — to rip
  16. file — a tool
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. chair — a leader
  19. file — a document
  20. club — for dancing
  21. bore — to drill
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. tear — from crying
  24. cue — a signal

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