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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. cold — not warm
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. suit — in cards
  10. pop — to visit
  11. suit — clothes
  12. suit — to fit
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. snap — to click
  15. sharp — clever
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. chip — for betting
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. cold — an illness
  21. pop — soda
  22. foot — a measure
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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