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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. track — a path
  10. plane — a tool
  11. cell — in biology
  12. kick — in football
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. track — a song
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. track — to keep track
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. bark — to shout
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. chip — to eat
  23. chip — for betting
  24. pitch — completely

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