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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. row — to paddle
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. mark — a trace
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. row — a line
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. file — a document
  17. saw — the tool
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a tool
  23. mark — a grade
  24. snap — to click

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