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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. land — a country
  3. sharp — clever
  4. bore — to drill
  5. pit — in a race
  6. can — to be able to
  7. bark — to shout
  8. pit — a hole
  9. file — a line of people
  10. land — to come down
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. land — ground
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. file — a tool
  20. fork — in a road
  21. file — a document
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — a tin
  24. fork — to eat with

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