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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. snap — to click
  4. fine — high quality
  5. toast — bread
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. scale — size or range
  8. hand — in cards
  9. spell — letters
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. scale — in music
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. fine — all right
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. rest — what's left
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. pit — in a race
  18. spell — magic
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. spell — a short time
  21. rest — a break
  22. pit — a hole
  23. rest — what's left
  24. hand — help

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