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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. swing — music
  3. last — final
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. swing — to play on
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. tube — a container
  10. last — finally
  11. press — to push
  12. tube — the underground
  13. rash — a series
  14. last — to go on
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. date — the fruit
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. press — a publisher
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. rash — hasty
  23. swing — in golf
  24. press — newspapers

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