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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. current — electric
  4. current — of water
  5. current — happening now
  6. fall — to drop
  7. degree — temperature
  8. fall — to drop
  9. hand — help
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. bark — to shout
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. degree — from a university
  18. snap — to click
  19. lean — to bend
  20. fall — the season
  21. degree — an amount
  22. hand — in cards
  23. lean — thin
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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