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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 116 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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. bore — to tire
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. fine — all right
  6. field — a subject
  7. bore — to drill
  8. clip — a video
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. field — farmland
  16. fork — in a road
  17. row — a line
  18. clip — to cut
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. clip — for paper
  21. fine — high quality
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. field — for sport
  24. wake — a trail

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