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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. charge — in control
  4. tear — from crying
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. swing — music
  7. bore — to tire
  8. tear — from crying
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. charge — electricity
  12. swing — in golf
  13. charge — a price
  14. board — a committee
  15. board — to get on
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. cold — an illness
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. swing — to play on
  22. tear — to rip
  23. bore — to drill
  24. cold — not warm

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