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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. snap — to click
  3. kid — to tease
  4. perch — the fish
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. kid — child
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. root — the cause
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. dip — to sink
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. mine — for digging
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. root — of a word
  21. lie — to recline
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bore — to tire
  24. root — of a plant

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