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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. saw — the tool
  9. land — ground
  10. pit — in a race
  11. mark — a trace
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. mark — a grade
  14. saw — the tool
  15. land — to come down
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. land — a country
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. tear — from crying
  23. pit — a hole
  24. bat — the animal

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