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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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468
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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. bank — of a river
  3. cell — a phone
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. spring — a coil
  9. spring — the season
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. field — a subject
  13. field — farmland
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. spring — of water
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — for money
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. cell — in biology
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. field — for sport
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. arm — a part of something

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