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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: present · straw · fall · snap · fine · cell

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. cell — a phone
  3. fine — high quality
  4. present — a gift
  5. present — the time now
  6. present — there
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. snap — to click
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. fine — all right
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. fall — to drop
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — the season
  18. cell — in a prison

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