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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. rest — what's left
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. fall — to drop
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. pitch — completely
  8. rest — what's left
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. mate — to breed
  13. bat — the animal
  14. mate — a partner
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. fall — the season
  18. scale — in music
  19. snap — to click
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. rest — a break
  22. mate — a friend
  23. fall — to drop
  24. scale — size or range

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