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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
468
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: file · kid · game · wake · march · bore · snap · can

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. can — to be able to
  4. game — wild animals
  5. file — a line of people
  6. snap — to click
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. file — a tool
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. march — music
  11. file — a document
  12. game — a match
  13. can — a tin
  14. march — the month
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. can — a tin
  19. kid — to tease
  20. march — the month
  21. wake — a trail
  22. kid — child
  23. bore — to drill
  24. wake — before a funeral

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