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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. bore — to drill
  3. bore — to tire
  4. clip — for paper
  5. drill — army training
  6. march — the month
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. drill — the tool
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. march — music
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. clip — to cut
  17. march — the month
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. fork — in a road
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. clip — a video
  24. drill — a practice

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