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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. spring — of water
  3. rest — what's left
  4. fall — to drop
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. spring — a coil
  8. file — a document
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. file — a tool
  11. rest — a break
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. wake — a trail
  19. fall — the season
  20. bark — to shout
  21. spring — the season
  22. file — a line of people
  23. fall — to drop
  24. snap — to click

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