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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 hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. net — in sport
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — of water
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. press — to push
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. hand — help
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. hand — in cards
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. spring — the season
  15. press — a publisher
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. press — newspapers
  19. net — after costs
  20. net — for catching
  21. snap — to click
  22. lie — to recline
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. nail — for a hammer

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