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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: kid · dip · face · rule · straw · prune · snap · spell

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. snap — to click
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. kid — to tease
  6. dip — to sink
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. spell — letters
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. spell — magic
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. face — to confront
  14. face — to point toward
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. rule — government
  17. prune — to trim
  18. face — part of the head
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. spell — a short time
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. prune — to trim
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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