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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. kid — to tease
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — to drop
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. track — to keep track
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. track — a song
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. swing — music
  18. swing — to play on
  19. track — a path
  20. swing — in golf
  21. fall — the season
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. kid — child
  24. deal — to handle

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