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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. bore — to drill
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. pit — in a race
  7. row — to paddle
  8. wake — a trail
  9. row — a line
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. content — the amount
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. spell — a short time
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. spell — magic
  17. content — happy
  18. pit — a hole
  19. chair — a leader
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. spell — letters
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bore — to tire

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