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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. charge — electricity
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. club — for golf
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. club — for dancing
  8. march — the month
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. snap — to click
  11. march — music
  12. charge — a price
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. march — the month
  15. sharp — clever
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. pitch — completely
  19. wound — an injury
  20. charge — in control
  21. wound — an injury
  22. club — a group
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. bulb — for light

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