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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. snap — to click
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. content — the amount
  9. squash — the sport
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mark — a grade
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. content — happy
  14. lean — to bend
  15. kick — in football
  16. stock — shares
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. stock — goods
  20. squash — to crush
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. lean — thin

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