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

Word bank: fork · pop · row · hide · snap · mine · rest · toast

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. rest — a break
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. mine — for digging
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fork — in a road
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. pop — soda
  11. pop — music
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. toast — bread
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. snap — to click
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. rest — what's left
  19. pop — to visit
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. row — to paddle
  22. rest — what's left
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. row — a line

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