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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: bay · patient · present · clip · roll · bore · firm · snap

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. roll — a cake
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. present — a gift
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. bore — to drill
  9. firm — decided
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. present — the time now
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. clip — to cut
  16. snap — to click
  17. roll — a list
  18. clip — for paper
  19. firm — steady
  20. clip — a video
  21. present — there
  22. bore — to tire
  23. firm — a company
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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