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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. face — to point toward
  3. snap — to click
  4. land — ground
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. cap — a hat
  7. face — to confront
  8. degree — from a university
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. land — to come down
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. cap — of ice
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. degree — an amount
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. roll — a cake
  19. face — part of the head
  20. land — a country
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. roll — a list
  23. degree — temperature
  24. safe — out of danger

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