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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  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. snap — to speak sharply
  2. wound — an injury
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. fall — to drop
  5. roll — a list
  6. foot — a measure
  7. swing — to play on
  8. key — in music
  9. wound — an injury
  10. fall — to drop
  11. key — the most important part
  12. swing — in golf
  13. land — a country
  14. roll — a cake
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. land — to come down
  19. swing — music
  20. fall — the season
  21. key — for a lock
  22. snap — to click
  23. land — ground
  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