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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: snap · firm · staff · fan · spring · pass · cell · field

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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. snap — to click
  3. cell — a phone
  4. staff — a stick
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. staff — employees
  7. field — a subject
  8. spring — the season
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. staff — employees
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. field — farmland
  13. firm — steady
  14. spring — of water
  15. firm — decided
  16. field — for sport
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cell — in biology
  22. firm — a company
  23. spring — a coil
  24. pass — a permit

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