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

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. kid — to tease
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. bore — to tire
  5. suit — in cards
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. firm — decided
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. bat — the animal
  11. drill — a practice
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. pit — a hole
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. drill — the tool
  18. bark — to shout
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. firm — steady
  21. kid — child
  22. drill — army training
  23. firm — a company
  24. suit — clothes

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