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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. craft — boats
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bore — to tire
  8. bark — to shout
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. race — the arms race
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. dip — to sink
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. date — the fruit
  16. race — humankind
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. bore — to drill
  19. squash — the sport
  20. race — a contest
  21. snap — to click
  22. craft — a skill
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. squash — to crush

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