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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 116 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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. rush — hurry
  4. object — an aim
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. object — to protest
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. row — a line
  14. snap — to click
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. object — a thing
  17. row — to paddle
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bat — the animal
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. chair — a leader
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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