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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. net — in sport
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bat — the animal
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. bear — the animal
  9. firm — decided
  10. firm — a company
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. mate — a partner
  13. root — of a plant
  14. snap — to click
  15. bear — the animal
  16. net — after costs
  17. mate — a friend
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. root — of a word
  20. net — for catching
  21. root — the cause
  22. saw — the tool
  23. firm — steady
  24. mate — to breed

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