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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 120 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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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. fall — to drop
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. file — a line of people
  5. vault — a safe
  6. snap — to click
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — a line
  11. file — a document
  12. file — a tool
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. fall — to drop
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. row — to paddle
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. mark — a trace
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. mark — a grade
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. fall — the season
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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