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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. mate — to breed
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. file — a tool
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. mate — a partner
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. wake — a trail
  10. mate — a friend
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. club — a group
  14. club — for dancing
  15. file — a line of people
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. club — for golf
  20. cold — an illness
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. file — a document
  24. snap — to click

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