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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  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. snap — to click
  2. degree — an amount
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bear — the animal
  6. current — electric
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. capital — a city
  11. current — happening now
  12. degree — temperature
  13. current — of water
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. degree — from a university
  17. scale — size or range
  18. capital — money
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. bear — the animal
  22. scale — in music
  23. bear — to put up with
  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