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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. chest — a box
  4. swing — music
  5. pop — to visit
  6. snap — to click
  7. staff — employees
  8. pop — soda
  9. chest — of your body
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. mark — a trace
  12. swing — to play on
  13. file — a document
  14. staff — a stick
  15. ball — a great time
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. chest — of your body
  18. file — a line of people
  19. ball — a dance
  20. swing — in golf
  21. pop — music
  22. file — a tool
  23. mark — a grade
  24. staff — employees

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