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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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. pitch — completely
  3. fall — to drop
  4. capital — money
  5. pass — a permit
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. snap — to click
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. fall — to drop
  14. key — for a lock
  15. key — the most important part
  16. capital — a city
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. key — in music
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. fall — the season
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. nail — for a hammer

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