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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. snap — to click
  6. current — of water
  7. bound — obliged
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. chip — for betting
  10. tear — to rip
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. chip — to eat
  16. bound — tied together
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. current — electric
  19. bound — certain
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. pitcher — a jug

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