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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. mug — a cup
  4. bear — the animal
  5. lean — to bend
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. capital — money
  9. snap — to click
  10. bear — the animal
  11. scale — size or range
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. mug — to rob
  15. lean — thin
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — a city
  18. kid — child
  19. scale — in music
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. mug — a face
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. pound — a weight

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