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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 120 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. content — the amount
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. row — a line
  10. row — to paddle
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. chip — for betting
  13. bear — the animal
  14. pass — a permit
  15. chip — to eat
  16. snap — to click
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. content — happy
  19. bear — the animal
  20. march — the month
  21. march — the month
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. march — music
  24. bear — to put up with

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