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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. mate — a partner
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. tear — to rip
  5. object — a thing
  6. field — a subject
  7. mate — to breed
  8. object — to protest
  9. club — for dancing
  10. object — an aim
  11. club — for golf
  12. club — a group
  13. field — for sport
  14. tear — from crying
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. tear — from crying
  18. mate — a friend
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. pitch — completely
  24. field — farmland

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