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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 116 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. key — for a lock
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. cap — a lid
  7. scale — size or range
  8. scale — in music
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cap — a hat
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. file — a line of people
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. key — the most important part
  15. key — in music
  16. wind — moving air
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a document
  19. club — a group
  20. club — for golf
  21. wind — moving air
  22. club — for dancing
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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