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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 116 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 · game · snap · nail · cue · rush · cold · bound

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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. game — a match
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — hurry
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. fall — the season
  7. bound — obliged
  8. game — wild animals
  9. fall — to drop
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bound — tied together
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cue — a signal
  16. bound — certain
  17. fall — to drop
  18. cue — a hint
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cold — an illness
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. snap — to click
  24. nail — on a finger

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