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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. degree — from a university
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. plane — a tool
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. kid — child
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. object — an aim
  13. snap — to click
  14. degree — temperature
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. degree — an amount
  18. object — a thing
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. wake — a trail
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. object — to protest

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