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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. swing — to play on
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. saw — the tool
  9. craft — a skill
  10. craft — boats
  11. dip — to sink
  12. scale — in music
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. swing — in golf
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. scale — size or range
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. swing — music
  19. file — a document
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. file — a tool
  22. file — a line of people
  23. snap — to click
  24. saw — the tool

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