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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: racket · kid · bore · dip · season · mine · mate · mark

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. season — of the year
  3. mate — to breed
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. dip — to sink
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. mate — a friend
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. season — in sport
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. mate — a partner
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. kid — child
  20. bore — to tire
  21. kid — to tease
  22. mark — a grade
  23. mark — a trace
  24. dip — a sauce

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