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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. season — in sport
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. perch — the fish
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. pass — a permit
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. date — the fruit
  18. snap — to click
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. season — of the year
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a line of people
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. file — a tool

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