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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. spell — letters
  3. chip — for betting
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. roll — a cake
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. roll — a list
  11. stand — to bear
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. last — final
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. spell — magic
  18. snap — to click
  19. last — finally
  20. last — to go on
  21. spell — a short time
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. chip — to eat

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