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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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. snap — to click
  3. ground — the earth
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. ground — a position
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. season — in sport
  10. stock — goods
  11. season — of the year
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. chest — of your body
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. chest — a box
  18. stock — shares
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. chest — of your body
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. bat — the animal
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. ground — crushed

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