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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bore — to drill
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — the fruit
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. field — farmland
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. plane — a tool
  10. press — to push
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. bark — to shout
  13. field — for sport
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. press — a publisher
  20. field — a subject
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. press — newspapers
  24. plane — an aircraft

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