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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pit — a hole
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. bulb — for light
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. pit — in a race
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. bulb — for light
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. spring — a coil
  14. game — wild animals
  15. band — a ring
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. game — a match
  19. band — a music group
  20. spring — of water
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. spring — the season
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. game — a kind of play

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