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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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Word bank
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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: ball · bore · rash · bulb · hand · mate · clip · bay

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. mate — a partner
  3. clip — to cut
  4. bore — to drill
  5. ball — a great time
  6. clip — for paper
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. hand — in cards
  9. mate — a friend
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. rash — hasty
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. clip — a video
  16. rash — a series
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. mate — to breed
  19. bore — to tire
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. ball — a dance
  24. bulb — for light

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