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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 · ruler · pitch · row · snap · chip · branch · race

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. race — the arms race
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. pitch — completely
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. chip — for betting
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. bore — to drill
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. branch — a division
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. bore — to tire
  16. chip — to eat
  17. race — a contest
  18. race — humankind
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. row — a line
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. row — to paddle
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. bore — gave birth

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