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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  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. last — to go on
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. last — finally
  5. chest — of your body
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. saw — the tool
  11. snap — to click
  12. saw — the tool
  13. bear — the animal
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. pass — a permit
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — for digging
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bear — the animal
  22. chest — a box
  23. last — final
  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