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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 116 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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. rock — music
  3. mine — for digging
  4. current — of water
  5. lie — to recline
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. snap — to click
  10. wake — a trail
  11. rock — a stone
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. kid — to tease
  18. pitch — completely
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. current — electric
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. current — happening now

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