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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.

Make a worksheet

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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. march — the month
  3. mate — a partner
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. craft — boats
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. mate — to breed
  12. march — music
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. chair — a leader
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. craft — a skill
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. march — the month
  21. mate — a friend
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. leaves — of a tree

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