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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. rash — hasty
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. field — farmland
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. snap — to click
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. rash — a series
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. field — for sport
  13. chip — for betting
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. chip — to eat
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. scale — in music
  20. lie — to recline
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. scale — size or range
  24. field — a subject

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