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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. squash — the sport
  3. court — of law
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. face — part of the head
  6. court — for sport
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. spell — magic
  9. face — to point toward
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. spell — a short time
  12. vault — a safe
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. stem — to come from
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. squash — to crush
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. face — to confront
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. court — of a king
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. spell — letters

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