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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to click
  3. rock — music
  4. roll — a cake
  5. rock — a stone
  6. land — ground
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. court — of law
  9. land — to come down
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. court — for sport
  12. land — a country
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. plane — a tool
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. roll — a list
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. court — of a king
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. roll — on a roll

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