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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 120 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. game — a match
  3. row — a line
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. net — in sport
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. stand — to bear
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. snap — to click
  12. net — for catching
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. chair — a leader
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. land — a country
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. land — to come down
  20. land — ground
  21. row — to paddle
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — wild animals
  24. net — after costs

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