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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. face — to confront
  3. cold — not warm
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. cold — an illness
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. kick — in football
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. snap — to click
  14. face — to point toward
  15. chip — for betting
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. face — part of the head
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. chip — to eat

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