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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. drill — army training
  3. snap — to click
  4. pop — to visit
  5. board — to get on
  6. face — part of the head
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. drill — the tool
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. face — to point toward
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. pop — music
  13. mine — for digging
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. clip — a video
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. board — a committee
  20. clip — to cut
  21. drill — a practice
  22. face — to confront
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. clip — for paper

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