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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: plane · cue · snap · toast · chest · rash · pop · bark

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. plane — a tool
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. pop — music
  5. rash — hasty
  6. chest — a box
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. chest — of your body
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. toast — bread
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pop — to visit
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. rash — a series
  16. bark — to shout
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. pop — soda
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. cue — for pool
  23. cue — a hint
  24. cue — a signal

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