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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. roll — a cake
  8. swing — in golf
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. pop — music
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. stand — to bear
  15. snap — to click
  16. swing — music
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. pop — soda
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. swing — to play on
  24. roll — a list

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