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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. mark — a grade
  10. vault — a safe
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. sharp — clever
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. clip — to cut
  15. snap — to click
  16. bat — the animal
  17. clip — a video
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. pitch — completely
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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