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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 116 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. rash — a series
  4. race — a contest
  5. object — a thing
  6. object — to protest
  7. race — the arms race
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. net — for catching
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. squash — to crush
  13. hand — in cards
  14. race — humankind
  15. rash — hasty
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. squash — the sport
  18. net — in sport
  19. object — an aim
  20. rush — hurry
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. net — after costs
  23. snap — to click
  24. hand — help

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