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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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Word bank
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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: game · rock · snap · last · suit · clip · lean · toast

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. last — to go on
  7. clip — for paper
  8. suit — clothes
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. suit — in cards
  11. game — a match
  12. lean — thin
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. suit — to fit
  15. last — final
  16. rock — music
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. snap — to click
  20. rock — a stone
  21. last — finally
  22. game — wild animals
  23. lean — to bend
  24. toast — bread

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