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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 120 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — for digging
  3. snap — to click
  4. spring — the season
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. can — to be able to
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. fork — in a road
  10. net — for catching
  11. net — after costs
  12. can — a tin
  13. net — in sport
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. spring — a coil
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. spring — of water
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. can — a tin
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fork — a garden tool

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