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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: toast · band · cold · bore · pitcher · deal · prune · kick

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. band — a ring
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. toast — bread
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. band — a music group
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. kick — in football
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. deal — to handle
  16. cold — an illness
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. cold — not warm
  19. bore — to tire
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. deal — a big deal

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