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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 120 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. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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. court — for sport
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. snap — to click
  5. press — to push
  6. content — happy
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. scale — in music
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. court — of law
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. court — of a king
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. scale — size or range
  20. press — a publisher
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. content — the amount
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. press — newspapers

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