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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. snap — to click
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. land — to come down
  9. club — a group
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. land — ground
  13. bat — the animal
  14. charge — a price
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. charge — in control
  17. club — for dancing
  18. charge — electricity
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. land — a country
  21. club — for golf
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. sharp — clever

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