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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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. bat — for baseball
  3. last — final
  4. bat — the animal
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wind — moving air
  7. spell — letters
  8. wake — a trail
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. snap — to click
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. spell — magic
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. last — to go on
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. last — finally
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. spell — a short time
  24. wind — moving air

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