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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to click
  3. race — humankind
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. bound — tied together
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bound — certain
  8. chip — for betting
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chair — a leader
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. race — the arms race
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cold — not warm
  19. bulb — for light
  20. race — a contest
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bulb — for light
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — in a computer

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