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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. tube — the underground
  3. rush — hurry
  4. snap — to click
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. squash — the sport
  7. squash — to crush
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. tube — a container
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. perch — the fish
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — to confront
  24. face — part of the head

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