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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 116 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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. spell — letters
  8. plane — a tool
  9. bore — to tire
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bore — to drill
  12. court — of law
  13. pit — in a race
  14. court — for sport
  15. spell — magic
  16. drill — army training
  17. court — of a king
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — a practice
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. spell — a short time
  23. rush — hurry
  24. pit — a hole

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