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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bat · chest · suit · snap · march · last · ball · lean

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. suit — clothes
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. suit — to fit
  5. ball — a dance
  6. chest — a box
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to bend
  9. last — to go on
  10. suit — in cards
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. last — finally
  13. last — final
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. chest — of your body
  16. march — the month
  17. bat — the animal
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. ball — a great time
  20. march — music
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. chest — of your body
  23. march — the month
  24. bat — in an idiom

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