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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. chair — a leader
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. club — a group
  7. bat — the animal
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. present — a gift
  10. present — the time now
  11. present — there
  12. club — for dancing
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. bear — the animal
  15. rash — a series
  16. plane — a tool
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. club — for golf
  19. bear — the animal
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. rash — hasty
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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