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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 116 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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. track — to keep track
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. last — finally
  5. track — a path
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. fine — high quality
  8. hand — in cards
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. hand — help
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. track — a song
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. last — final
  16. snap — to click
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. shower — rain
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. fine — all right
  21. last — to go on
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. deal — to handle
  24. shower — to wash

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