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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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. arm — part of the body
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. cell — a phone
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. face — to point toward
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. rule — a law
  9. cell — in biology
  10. rule — government
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. face — to confront
  16. face — part of the head
  17. pass — a permit
  18. snap — to click
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. perch — the fish

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