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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: cell · suit · snap · drill · wound · face · fall · bulb

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. drill — the tool
  3. suit — to fit
  4. wound — an injury
  5. drill — a practice
  6. fall — to drop
  7. face — to point toward
  8. suit — clothes
  9. fall — the season
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. bulb — for light
  12. face — to confront
  13. snap — to click
  14. cell — in biology
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wound — an injury
  17. drill — army training
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. suit — in cards
  20. bulb — for light
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. face — part of the head

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