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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. hand — in cards
  3. hand — help
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. mate — to breed
  8. pop — to visit
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. wind — moving air
  11. mate — a partner
  12. bore — to drill
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. snap — to click
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. mate — a friend
  18. bore — to tire
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. roll — a list
  21. roll — a cake
  22. pop — music
  23. wind — moving air
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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