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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  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. bark — of a tree
  2. bore — to tire
  3. wake — a trail
  4. sharp — clever
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. rule — government
  7. snap — to click
  8. bark — to shout
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. bore — to drill
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. rule — a law
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  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