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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. bore — to drill
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. squash — to crush
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. season — in sport
  9. pass — a permit
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. season — of the year
  14. clip — to cut
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. clip — a video
  17. bass — the fish
  18. squash — the sport
  19. bore — to tire
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. kick — in football
  22. bark — to shout
  23. clip — for paper
  24. bass — low music

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