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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. face — part of the head
  4. degree — an amount
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. fall — the season
  8. bore — to drill
  9. face — to point toward
  10. can — a tin
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. snap — to click
  14. fall — to drop
  15. can — a tin
  16. degree — from a university
  17. branch — a division
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. can — to be able to
  20. sharp — clever
  21. fall — to drop
  22. face — to confront
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. degree — temperature

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