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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. toast — bread
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. spell — a short time
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. snap — to click
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. pass — a permit
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. spell — magic
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — to wash
  15. saw — the tool
  16. spell — letters
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. kick — in football
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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