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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. pit — a hole
  5. land — ground
  6. land — to come down
  7. bound — tied together
  8. stand — to bear
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. pit — in a race
  13. game — a match
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. plane — a tool
  17. bound — certain
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bound — obliged
  20. snap — to click
  21. land — a country
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

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