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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 120 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. swing — to play on
  3. spell — magic
  4. rock — music
  5. bear — the animal
  6. spell — a short time
  7. ground — crushed
  8. wind — moving air
  9. ground — the earth
  10. bear — the animal
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a committee
  13. swing — in golf
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. rock — a stone
  17. snap — to click
  18. swing — music
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. ground — a position
  21. spell — letters
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. board — a flat piece

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