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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 120 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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. fall — to drop
  6. snap — to click
  7. mark — a grade
  8. band — a music group
  9. sharp — clever
  10. band — a ring
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. cap — of ice
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. mine — for digging
  16. cap — a hat
  17. fall — the season
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. cap — a lid
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. fall — to drop
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. mark — a trace
  24. mark — to pay attention

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