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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 116 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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. snap — to click
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. pitch — completely
  7. can — to be able to
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. bulb — for light
  10. cold — not warm
  11. stock — shares
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. cold — an illness
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — a tin
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. bulb — for light
  21. ball — a great time
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. stock — goods
  24. ball — a dance

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