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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to click
  4. chair — a leader
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. rest — what's left
  7. spring — of water
  8. rest — a break
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. fall — to drop
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. fall — the season
  13. spring — the season
  14. tube — the underground
  15. race — humankind
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. race — a contest
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. spring — a coil
  20. tube — a container
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. race — the arms race
  24. fall — to drop

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