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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. rush — hurry
  6. fall — the season
  7. snap — to click
  8. march — the month
  9. pass — a permit
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. fall — to drop
  19. march — the month
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. bark — to shout
  22. march — music
  23. bat — the animal
  24. fall — to drop

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