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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. track — to keep track
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bore — to drill
  5. rule — a law
  6. track — a song
  7. face — part of the head
  8. band — a music group
  9. dip — to sink
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. face — to point toward
  13. band — a ring
  14. drill — army training
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. track — a path
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. bore — to tire
  20. drill — a practice
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. rule — government
  23. face — to confront
  24. snap — to click

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