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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. capital — a city
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. snap — to click
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. content — happy
  11. board — a committee
  12. capital — money
  13. row — a line
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. sharp — clever
  16. content — the amount
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. row — to paddle
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. board — to get on
  22. deal — to handle
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. deal — an agreement

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