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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. cold — an illness
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. dip — to sink
  6. date — the fruit
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cold — not warm
  9. row — a line
  10. bore — to drill
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. row — to paddle
  13. hand — in cards
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. kick — in football
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. hand — help
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bore — to tire
  24. kick — with a leg

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