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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 116 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. snap — to click
  3. rash — a series
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a match
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. rush — hurry
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. present — a gift
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. present — the time now
  24. present — there

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