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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 will it ________________ you to start?
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. snap — to click
  3. pit — in a race
  4. press — a publisher
  5. pit — a hole
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. craft — a skill
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. suit — in cards
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. press — newspapers
  15. game — a match
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — wild animals
  18. craft — boats
  19. hand — in cards
  20. hand — help
  21. press — to push
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. suit — clothes
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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