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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 120 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 are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. bound — obliged
  3. net — in sport
  4. club — a group
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. cue — a hint
  7. kid — to tease
  8. club — for golf
  9. club — for dancing
  10. firm — decided
  11. row — a line
  12. net — after costs
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. firm — a company
  15. firm — steady
  16. cue — a signal
  17. kid — child
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. net — for catching
  20. bound — tied together
  21. row — to paddle
  22. cue — for pool
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. bound — certain

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