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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 116 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
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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: bore · mine · lash · drill · cue · patient · shower · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. drill — army training
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. clip — for paper
  7. drill — a practice
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bore — to tire
  11. cue — a signal
  12. shower — rain
  13. cue — a hint
  14. bore — to drill
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. clip — a video
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. mine — for digging
  19. drill — the tool
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. shower — to wash
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. cue — for pool
  24. lash — an eyelash

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