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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. race — a contest
  3. snap — to click
  4. game — a match
  5. cue — a hint
  6. can — a tin
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. prune — to trim
  10. cue — for pool
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. toast — bread
  13. game — wild animals
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. hand — in cards
  17. race — the arms race
  18. hand — help
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. can — to be able to
  21. cue — a signal
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. race — humankind
  24. prune — to trim

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