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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: snap · bore · present · plane · march · bass · file · track

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. present — a gift
  3. bass — the fish
  4. bore — to tire
  5. bass — low music
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. present — the time now
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. file — a line of people
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. track — a song
  12. file — a document
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. bore — to drill
  15. file — a tool
  16. track — a path
  17. present — there
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. snap — to click
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. plane — a tool
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. track — to keep track

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