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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. fall — to drop
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. clip — for paper
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. fall — the season
  12. tube — a container
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. tube — the underground
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. clip — a video
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. clip — to cut

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