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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. chest — of your body
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. pass — a permit
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. chest — of your body
  7. perch — the fish
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. mate — to breed
  10. chair — a leader
  11. row — to paddle
  12. mate — a friend
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. snap — to click
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. chest — a box
  18. mate — a partner
  19. row — a line
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. date — the fruit
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. chair — a professorship

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