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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pass — a permit
  3. present — the time now
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rest — a break
  6. toast — bread
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. track — to keep track
  11. rest — what's left
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. track — a song
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. present — a gift
  17. row — a line
  18. hand — in cards
  19. track — a path
  20. row — to paddle
  21. hand — help
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. present — there

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