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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 120 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  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. rush — hurry
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. clip — a video
  6. lean — to bend
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. rash — a series
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a hole
  15. spell — a short time
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. clip — for paper
  18. rash — hasty
  19. lean — thin
  20. spell — letters
  21. pitch — completely
  22. snap — to click
  23. clip — to cut
  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