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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. last — to go on
  3. mug — a cup
  4. mug — a face
  5. object — an aim
  6. court — of a king
  7. degree — an amount
  8. court — of law
  9. land — a country
  10. land — ground
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. object — a thing
  13. object — to protest
  14. mug — to rob
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. court — for sport
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — temperature
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. rush — hurry
  21. last — final
  22. last — finally
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. land — to come down

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