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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. game — a match
  5. shower — to wash
  6. mug — a face
  7. craft — boats
  8. snap — to click
  9. rash — a series
  10. mug — a cup
  11. clip — for paper
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — to cut
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. rash — hasty
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. game — wild animals
  21. craft — a skill
  22. pass — a permit
  23. shower — rain
  24. pass — to spend time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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