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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: mouse · bore · pit · clip · prune · patient · mark · drill

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. mark — a trace
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bore — to tire
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. drill — a practice
  8. clip — to cut
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. prune — to trim
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. mark — a grade
  15. drill — army training
  16. prune — to trim
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bore — to drill
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. pit — in a race
  23. clip — a video
  24. pit — a hole

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