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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 116 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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. charge — electricity
  3. charge — a price
  4. wake — a trail
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cap — a hat
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — in music
  10. charge — in control
  11. key — the most important part
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bound — obliged
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a line
  16. bound — certain
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. snap — to click
  19. wind — moving air
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. bound — tied together
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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