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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. spell — letters
  3. key — in music
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. spell — magic
  6. cap — a lid
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. root — of a plant
  9. root — of a word
  10. root — the cause
  11. cap — a hat
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — to breed
  14. row — to paddle
  15. key — for a lock
  16. spell — a short time
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. cap — of ice
  19. key — the most important part
  20. row — a line
  21. bulb — for light
  22. mate — a friend
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — of a plant

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