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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. snap — to click
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. present — the time now
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. capital — a city
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. capital — money
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. present — there
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. saw — the tool
  18. present — a gift

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