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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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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: hand · file · march · deal · cap · snap · bore · rule

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. hand — in cards
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to click
  5. march — music
  6. march — the month
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. hand — help
  9. file — a document
  10. rule — a law
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. file — a line of people
  13. deal — to handle
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. cap — a hat
  16. file — a tool
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. cap — of ice
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. cap — a lid
  22. march — the month
  23. bore — to drill
  24. rule — government

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