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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. file — a tool
  3. fall — to drop
  4. pop — soda
  5. cap — a lid
  6. cap — a hat
  7. bat — the animal
  8. mark — a grade
  9. pop — music
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. season — of the year
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. cap — of ice
  15. file — a line of people
  16. file — a document
  17. fall — the season
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. fall — to drop
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. season — in sport
  24. snap — to click

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