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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. cell — a phone
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. hand — help
  8. tube — the underground
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. net — after costs
  11. net — for catching
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. bat — the animal
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. cell — in biology
  18. snap — to click
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. net — in sport
  21. hand — in cards
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. tube — a container
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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