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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. bore — to tire
  6. club — a group
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. file — a tool
  9. object — an aim
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. file — a line of people
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. file — a document
  14. object — to protest
  15. snap — to click
  16. club — for dancing
  17. bore — to drill
  18. object — a thing
  19. scale — size or range
  20. scale — in music
  21. dip — to sink
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — a sauce

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