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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. chest — of your body
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. rush — hurry
  8. present — there
  9. pitch — completely
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. chest — a box
  14. present — a gift
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. chest — of your body
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. present — the time now
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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