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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. bore — to tire
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. bore — to drill
  5. file — a document
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. prune — to trim
  9. present — a gift
  10. present — there
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. row — a line
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. file — a line of people
  15. track — a path
  16. row — to paddle
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. snap — to click
  19. track — to keep track
  20. file — a tool
  21. prune — to trim
  22. present — the time now
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. row — a quarrel

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