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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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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 · tear · fork · present · degree · ball · cabinet · bat

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — to drill
  4. tear — from crying
  5. present — there
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. ball — a great time
  9. degree — an amount
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. bat — the animal
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. degree — temperature
  16. tear — to rip
  17. degree — from a university
  18. present — a gift
  19. tear — from crying
  20. fork — in a road
  21. ball — a dance
  22. present — the time now
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bat — in an idiom

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