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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: snap · sharp · rest · mate · kick · land · tear · face

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. sharp — clever
  3. rest — a break
  4. snap — to click
  5. land — to come down
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. land — a country
  8. mate — a partner
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. kick — in football
  12. land — ground
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. face — to point toward
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. face — to confront
  18. tear — to rip
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. tear — from crying
  21. face — part of the head
  22. tear — from crying
  23. mate — to breed
  24. sharp — exactly

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