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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: chest · snap · mug · date · cabinet · bound · bat · lean

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. snap — to click
  3. bound — certain
  4. date — the fruit
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. chest — of your body
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. chest — a box
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. lean — thin
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. bound — tied together
  15. mug — a face
  16. bound — obliged
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. bat — the animal
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. mug — a cup
  24. chest — of your body

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