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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 124 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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. snap — to click
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. dip — to sink
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. tube — the underground
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. mark — a grade
  12. clip — to cut
  13. clip — a video
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. tube — a container
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. bear — the animal
  21. clip — for paper
  22. mark — a trace
  23. bear — the animal
  24. mark — to pay attention

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