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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. mate — to breed
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. tube — the underground
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. fork — in a road
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. tube — a container
  11. mate — a partner
  12. firm — steady
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. kid — to tease
  16. march — the month
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. mate — a friend
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. firm — a company
  22. kid — child
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. firm — decided

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