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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. lie — to recline
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. last — final
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. current — happening now
  7. present — there
  8. clip — to cut
  9. current — of water
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — finally
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. clip — a video
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. present — a gift
  16. mine — for digging
  17. foot — a measure
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. present — the time now
  21. clip — for paper
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. snap — to click
  24. current — electric

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