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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: fall · clip · foot · snap · charge · staff · spring · face

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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. staff — employees
  3. clip — for paper
  4. fall — the season
  5. charge — in control
  6. fall — to drop
  7. clip — a video
  8. foot — a measure
  9. staff — employees
  10. spring — the season
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. charge — a price
  14. face — to confront
  15. fall — to drop
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. spring — of water
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. face — to point toward
  20. clip — to cut
  21. face — part of the head
  22. spring — a coil
  23. charge — electricity
  24. staff — a stick

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