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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. mate — to breed
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. track — a song
  7. clip — to cut
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. clip — a video
  11. mate — a partner
  12. press — to push
  13. press — a publisher
  14. bear — the animal
  15. current — happening now
  16. track — a path
  17. bear — the animal
  18. track — to keep track
  19. press — newspapers
  20. current — electric
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. current — of water
  23. clip — for paper
  24. mate — a friend

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