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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. cap — of ice
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. rule — government
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. cap — a hat
  12. rule — a law
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a hole
  15. land — to come down
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. land — ground
  18. bear — the animal
  19. wax — to grow
  20. pitch — completely
  21. cap — a lid
  22. bear — the animal
  23. land — a country
  24. rule — to rule out

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