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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  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. wake — before a funeral
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. race — humankind
  4. wake — a trail
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. race — the arms race
  10. snap — to click
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. chest — of your body
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. deal — to handle
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. chest — a box
  18. race — a contest
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bat — the animal
  21. fork — in a road
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  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