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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 would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  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. toast — a drink to someone
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. snap — to click
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. toast — bread
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. mate — a partner
  9. chest — of your body
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. mate — to breed
  12. mate — a friend
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. chest — a box
  16. kid — to tease
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. squash — the sport
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. squash — to crush
  22. chest — of your body
  23. kid — child
  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