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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 office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. staff — employees
  3. spring — a coil
  4. fall — the season
  5. spring — of water
  6. fall — to drop
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. bark — to shout
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. staff — a stick
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. snap — to click
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. spring — the season
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. rash — a series
  19. staff — employees
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. fall — to drop
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. rash — hasty

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