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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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. pitcher — a jug
  3. spell — a short time
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. last — to go on
  6. degree — temperature
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. degree — an amount
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. last — finally
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. band — a ring
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. snap — to click
  17. band — a music group
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. rush — hurry
  20. spell — letters
  21. degree — from a university
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. last — final
  24. spell — magic

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