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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: chair · chest · mug · kick · snap · wake · fall · bore

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bore — to tire
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chest — a box
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. fall — the season
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. chest — of your body
  15. mug — a face
  16. kick — in football
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. mug — to rob
  19. chest — of your body
  20. snap — to click
  21. wake — a trail
  22. bore — to drill
  23. fall — to drop
  24. mug — a cup

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