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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. kid — to tease
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. march — music
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. spring — of water
  8. firm — a company
  9. snap — to click
  10. march — the month
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. spring — a coil
  15. firm — steady
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. kid — child
  18. scale — size or range
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. spring — the season
  22. scale — in music
  23. firm — decided
  24. march — the month

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