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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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. swing — to play on
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. swing — in golf
  7. bass — the fish
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — in cards
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. bore — to tire
  13. hand — help
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bass — low music
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. swing — music
  23. mine — for digging
  24. date — the fruit

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