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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. charge — in control
  3. charge — electricity
  4. track — to keep track
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. charge — a price
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. track — a song
  10. sharp — clever
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. track — a path
  19. bear — the animal
  20. mine — for digging
  21. bear — the animal
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a ring
  24. sharp — with an edge

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