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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 124 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. band — a ring
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. snap — to click
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. mine — for digging
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. dip — to sink
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. band — a music group
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. rock — music
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. rock — a stone
  24. leaves — of a tree

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