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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. snap — to click
  6. bass — the fish
  7. band — a music group
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. mate — a friend
  12. band — a ring
  13. rule — government
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bass — low music
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. bore — to drill
  19. mate — to breed
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. mate — a partner
  24. rule — a law

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