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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. wound — an injury
  4. snap — to click
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. mug — a face
  7. current — happening now
  8. mug — a cup
  9. prune — to trim
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. mug — to rob
  13. shower — to wash
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. rule — a law
  17. prune — to trim
  18. current — electric
  19. shower — rain
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. current — of water
  22. wound — an injury
  23. rule — government
  24. bat — for baseball

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