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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 120 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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  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. snap — to snap out of it
  2. drill — the tool
  3. wake — a trail
  4. drill — army training
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. fall — to drop
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. fall — to drop
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. board — to get on
  12. band — a ring
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. drill — a practice
  15. band — a music group
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. fall — the season
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. board — a committee
  21. craft — a skill
  22. craft — boats
  23. snap — to click
  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