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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. hand — in cards
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. wind — moving air
  9. mark — a trace
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. hand — help
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. mark — a grade
  15. snap — to click
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rash — a series
  18. rest — what's left
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. pass — a permit
  21. wind — moving air
  22. rash — hasty
  23. rest — a break
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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