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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: file · snap · bay · present · bat · scale · date · bore

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. present — the time now
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. scale — in music
  5. present — there
  6. date — the fruit
  7. file — a tool
  8. snap — to click
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. scale — size or range
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. file — a document
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. present — a gift
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bore — to tire
  19. file — a line of people
  20. bat — the animal
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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