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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. march — the month
  4. charge — electricity
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. pop — to visit
  9. march — the month
  10. mate — a friend
  11. cold — not warm
  12. mate — to breed
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. snap — to click
  15. cold — an illness
  16. charge — a price
  17. mate — a partner
  18. lean — thin
  19. lean — to bend
  20. pop — music
  21. charge — in control
  22. pop — soda
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. march — music

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