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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: bore · toast · track · pit · snap · season · club · row

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. pit — a hole
  5. club — for dancing
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. toast — bread
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. club — a group
  10. bore — to tire
  11. row — a line
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. season — in sport
  15. track — to keep track
  16. bore — to drill
  17. snap — to click
  18. track — a song
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. track — a path
  21. club — for golf
  22. pit — in a race
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. row — to paddle

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