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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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. snap — to click
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. pop — music
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. cold — an illness
  7. deal — to handle
  8. capital — money
  9. pop — soda
  10. suit — in cards
  11. capital — a city
  12. pop — to visit
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. stem — to come from
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. suit — to fit
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. cold — not warm
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. suit — clothes

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