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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  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 drill
  2. snap — to click
  3. cell — a phone
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. content — happy
  13. cell — in biology
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. date — the fruit
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. deal — to handle
  20. fork — in a road
  21. content — the amount
  22. bore — to tire
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  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