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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. tear — from crying
  5. hand — help
  6. deal — to handle
  7. rash — hasty
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. tear — to rip
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cap — of ice
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. hand — in cards
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. cap — a hat
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. rash — a series
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. tear — from crying
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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