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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. court — of a king
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. firm — steady
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. court — for sport
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. band — a music group
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. wound — an injury
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. band — a ring
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. firm — decided
  20. firm — a company
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. wound — an injury
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. court — of law

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