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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. scale — in music
  4. scale — size or range
  5. rush — hurry
  6. shower — rain
  7. last — final
  8. last — to go on
  9. drill — the tool
  10. drill — army training
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — thin
  14. snap — to click
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. last — finally
  21. shower — to wash
  22. drill — a practice
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. wake — a trail

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