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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. snap — to click
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in biology
  6. last — final
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. drill — army training
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — the tool
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — finally
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. dip — to sink
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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