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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. ground — the earth
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. squash — the sport
  5. ground — crushed
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. squash — to crush
  10. spring — a coil
  11. last — finally
  12. wake — a trail
  13. bound — obliged
  14. lie — to recline
  15. ground — a position
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. last — final
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. bound — certain
  20. spring — the season
  21. bound — tied together
  22. last — to go on
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. spring — of water

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