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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. branch — a division
  4. ball — a great time
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. ball — a dance
  8. shower — rain
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. spell — a short time
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. fine — high quality
  14. snap — to click
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. spell — letters
  17. fine — all right
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — a match
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. spell — magic
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. shower — to wash
  24. game — wild animals

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