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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. clip — for paper
  3. dip — to sink
  4. snap — to click
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. board — a committee
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. clip — a video
  10. squash — to crush
  11. shower — to wash
  12. clip — to cut
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. board — to get on
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. squash — the sport
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. snap — to speak sharply

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