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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: bark · drill · mate · mine · squash · rest · wake · plane

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. mate — to breed
  3. rest — what's left
  4. drill — a practice
  5. squash — the sport
  6. drill — the tool
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — for digging
  9. rest — what's left
  10. drill — army training
  11. wake — a trail
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. bark — to shout
  16. mate — a friend
  17. plane — a tool
  18. mate — a partner
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — to crush
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. rest — a break
  24. plane — in geometry

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