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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. snap — to click
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. bark — to shout
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. bulb — for light
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. rush — hurry
  17. face — to confront
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. game — wild animals
  22. bulb — for light
  23. face — part of the head
  24. face — to point toward

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