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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 120 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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to click
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. bore — to drill
  5. board — to get on
  6. tear — from crying
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — the tool
  9. tear — to rip
  10. bore — to tire
  11. dip — to sink
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. drill — a practice
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. hand — help
  20. hand — in cards
  21. tear — from crying
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. board — a committee
  24. coach — a trainer

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