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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  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. bore — to drill
  2. snap — to click
  3. bark — to shout
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. chest — of your body
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — a grade
  8. bore — to tire
  9. chest — of your body
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. march — the month
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. plane — a tool
  15. march — the month
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. march — music
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. chest — a box
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. bark — of a tree
  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