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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. wound — an injury
  3. snap — to click
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. wound — an injury
  7. tear — from crying
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. lean — to bend
  11. tear — to rip
  12. bulb — for light
  13. tear — from crying
  14. land — a country
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bulb — for light
  17. land — to come down
  18. lean — thin
  19. chip — to eat
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. land — ground
  22. chip — for betting
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mouse — the animal

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