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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lean — thin
  5. cell — a phone
  6. snap — to click
  7. chip — to eat
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. file — a document
  10. mate — to breed
  11. march — the month
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. kick — in football
  14. chip — for betting
  15. lean — to bend
  16. march — the month
  17. file — a tool
  18. march — music
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. mate — a partner
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. cell — in biology
  23. file — a line of people
  24. mate — a friend

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