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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. spell — letters
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. mine — for digging
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. can — to be able to
  8. can — a tin
  9. chip — for betting
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. can — a tin
  12. chip — to eat
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. spell — magic
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. spell — a short time
  18. snap — to click

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