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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: fall · game · chair · nail · cue · snap · stem · key

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. fall — to drop
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. key — in music
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. key — the most important part
  11. game — wild animals
  12. key — for a lock
  13. cue — a hint
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. game — a match
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — to come from
  18. chair — a leader
  19. fall — the season
  20. cue — a signal
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. cue — for pool
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. fall — to drop

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