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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. bore — to tire
  3. shower — rain
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. row — a line
  6. clip — a video
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. swing — in golf
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. shower — to wash
  12. clip — to cut
  13. swing — music
  14. swing — to play on
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. clip — for paper
  17. row — to paddle
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. current — of water
  21. dip — to sink
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. current — electric
  24. current — happening now

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