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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. cue — for pool
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. file — a tool
  6. chip — for betting
  7. net — in sport
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. net — after costs
  11. chip — to eat
  12. cue — a signal
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — a break
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. cold — not warm
  18. file — a line of people
  19. net — for catching
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — an illness
  22. rest — what's left
  23. file — a document
  24. cue — a hint

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