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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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. snap — to speak sharply
  3. object — to protest
  4. object — a thing
  5. pass — a permit
  6. bark — to shout
  7. present — a gift
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. object — an aim
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. present — there
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. clip — a video
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. fine — all right
  16. clip — for paper
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. snap — to click
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. fine — high quality
  22. clip — to cut
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. present — the time now

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