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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. ground — a position
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. key — the most important part
  7. pit — in a race
  8. wind — moving air
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. pit — a hole
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. perch — the fish
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. ground — the earth
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. key — in music
  22. wind — moving air
  23. ground — crushed
  24. key — for a lock

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