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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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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: perch · swing · snap · track · dip · row · bore · mine

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bore — to tire
  3. swing — music
  4. row — a line
  5. mine — for digging
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. row — to paddle
  9. dip — to sink
  10. swing — to play on
  11. track — a song
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. perch — the fish
  14. bore — to drill
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. track — to keep track
  17. swing — in golf
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. track — a path
  24. snap — to click

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