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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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. pit — a hole
  4. cue — a signal
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. pit — in a race
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. cue — for pool
  9. cue — a hint
  10. wind — moving air
  11. swing — in golf
  12. bark — to shout
  13. mark — a grade
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. mark — a trace
  17. snap — to click
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. chest — a box
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — music

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