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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. file — a tool
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. sharp — clever
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. snap — to click
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. wake — a trail
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. bat — the animal
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. file — a document

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