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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. spring — a coil
  5. bear — the animal
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. current — of water
  8. net — in sport
  9. snap — to click
  10. net — for catching
  11. lean — to bend
  12. staff — employees
  13. bear — the animal
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a line
  16. net — after costs
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. spring — of water
  19. current — electric
  20. current — happening now
  21. spring — the season
  22. staff — a stick
  23. staff — employees
  24. lean — thin

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