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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pop — soda
  3. game — wild animals
  4. game — a match
  5. object — a thing
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bore — to tire
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. pop — to visit
  12. bore — to drill
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. pop — music
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. lean — thin
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. object — an aim
  23. object — to protest
  24. lean — to bend

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