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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. sharp — clever
  5. cell — a phone
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. rock — a stone
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. snap — to click
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. cell — in biology
  13. face — to confront
  14. degree — from a university
  15. face — to point toward
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. hand — in cards
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. degree — temperature
  20. rock — music
  21. hand — help
  22. degree — an amount
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. rock — to move gently

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