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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 116 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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. pop — music
  3. wake — a trail
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. net — after costs
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — to visit
  11. snap — to click
  12. net — for catching
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. hand — in cards
  17. court — of law
  18. court — of a king
  19. stem — to come from
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. saw — the tool
  22. hand — help
  23. saw — the tool
  24. court — for sport

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