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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. scale — size or range
  3. mug — a face
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. mug — to rob
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. rest — a break
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. row — to paddle
  12. saw — the tool
  13. scale — in music
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. chest — of your body
  16. rest — what's left
  17. mug — a cup
  18. chest — of your body
  19. row — a line
  20. chest — a box
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. saw — the tool
  23. snap — to click
  24. rest — what's left

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