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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. fall — to drop
  3. lean — thin
  4. fall — the season
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. fork — in a road
  8. pitch — completely
  9. row — to paddle
  10. snap — to click
  11. current — of water
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. lean — to bend
  15. fall — to drop
  16. prune — to trim
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. row — a line
  20. current — happening now
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. current — electric
  24. fork — to eat with

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