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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 need to ________________ round.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pop — soda
  3. present — the time now
  4. file — a line of people
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. present — there
  7. club — for dancing
  8. tear — from crying
  9. club — a group
  10. file — a document
  11. rush — hurry
  12. club — for golf
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. file — a tool
  15. present — a gift
  16. cell — a phone
  17. snap — to click
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cell — in biology
  20. tear — to rip
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. pop — music
  24. rush — to hurry

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