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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: dip · snap · hand · lean · rest · present · mine · row

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. row — to paddle
  3. lean — to bend
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. rest — what's left
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. row — a line
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. rest — what's left
  10. hand — help
  11. snap — to click
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. present — a gift
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. dip — to sink
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — for digging
  19. rest — a break
  20. hand — in cards
  21. present — the time now
  22. lean — thin
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. present — there

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