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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 124 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. current — happening now
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. lean — to bend
  7. rash — hasty
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. tear — from crying
  10. plane — a tool
  11. hand — help
  12. cap — a hat
  13. snap — to click
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cap — of ice
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. current — electric
  19. rash — a series
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. current — of water
  22. cap — a lid
  23. lean — thin
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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