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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. chest — of your body
  3. game — a match
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. game — wild animals
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bark — to shout
  8. content — happy
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. chest — of your body
  11. press — a publisher
  12. mug — to rob
  13. snap — to click
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. mug — a cup
  19. content — the amount
  20. press — newspapers
  21. mug — a face
  22. press — to push
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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