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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. bank — for money
  4. saw — the tool
  5. bear — the animal
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. field — farmland
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. bank — of a river
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — a subject
  13. pass — a permit
  14. clip — a video
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bank — for money
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bear — the animal
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. stand — to bear
  23. saw — the tool
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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