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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. land — to come down
  3. snap — to click
  4. object — to protest
  5. suit — to fit
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. suit — clothes
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. land — ground
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. rock — music
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — a leader
  15. pound — a weight
  16. wound — an injury
  17. object — an aim
  18. wound — an injury
  19. object — a thing
  20. rock — a stone
  21. land — a country
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. suit — in cards

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