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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 I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  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. snap — to click
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. kid — to tease
  5. file — a line of people
  6. court — of a king
  7. key — the most important part
  8. key — for a lock
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. key — in music
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. file — a document
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. court — for sport
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. court — of law
  19. board — a committee
  20. kid — child
  21. file — a tool
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. board — to get on
  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