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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — a tin
  4. net — for catching
  5. snap — to click
  6. cap — of ice
  7. net — in sport
  8. bound — obliged
  9. swing — in golf
  10. net — after costs
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — to cut
  13. swing — music
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. bound — certain
  16. cap — a lid
  17. clip — for paper
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. can — to be able to
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. cap — a hat
  23. swing — to play on
  24. bound — tied together

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