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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 120 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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. game — wild animals
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. cue — a signal
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. cue — for pool
  12. vault — a safe
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. chip — for betting
  16. cue — a hint
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bear — the animal
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. chip — to eat
  23. game — a match
  24. cold — not warm

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