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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. hand — in cards
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. mark — a trace
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — from a university
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. clip — for paper
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. bore — to drill
  15. clip — to cut
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. mark — a grade
  19. hand — help
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. degree — temperature
  24. clip — a video

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