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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. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. plane — a tool
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. rash — hasty
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. rash — a series
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. last — to go on
  13. ball — a dance
  14. deal — to handle
  15. last — finally
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. last — final
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. capital — money
  22. capital — a city
  23. ball — a great time
  24. deal — an agreement

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