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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 father caught me by the ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  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. arm — part of the body
  2. game — a match
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. game — wild animals
  7. rest — what's left
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. rest — a break
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. key — the most important part
  14. plane — a tool
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. bat — the animal
  17. rest — what's left
  18. key — for a lock
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. snap — to click
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. key — in music
  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