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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: snap · rule · bound · mate · file · perch · prune · wake

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. mate — a friend
  3. wake — a trail
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. bound — certain
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. rule — government
  9. prune — to trim
  10. bound — obliged
  11. mate — a partner
  12. snap — to click
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a document
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. mate — to breed
  18. perch — the fish
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. bound — tied together
  21. file — a line of people
  22. prune — to trim
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. rule — a law

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