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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. mine — for digging
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. hand — in cards
  7. perch — the fish
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. kick — in football
  12. snap — to click
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. pass — a permit
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. rash — hasty
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — help
  24. rash — a series

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