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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. mug — to rob
  3. field — for sport
  4. band — a ring
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. race — the arms race
  7. band — a music group
  8. chip — to eat
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — the fish
  11. wake — a trail
  12. race — a contest
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. race — humankind
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. mug — a cup
  19. field — farmland
  20. mug — a face
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. chip — for betting
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. field — a subject

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