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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 120 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: shower · snap · present · stick · scale · saw · squash · rest

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. rest — what's left
  7. scale — size or range
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. rest — what's left
  10. saw — the tool
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — rain
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. scale — in music
  15. present — there
  16. squash — the sport
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. snap — to click
  19. squash — to crush
  20. present — the time now
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. saw — the tool
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. rest — a break

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