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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 have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. shower — to wash
  3. shower — rain
  4. stock — goods
  5. snap — to click
  6. fall — to drop
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. fall — the season
  11. dip — to sink
  12. stock — shares
  13. fall — to drop
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cap — a hat
  16. pitch — completely
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. cap — a lid
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. date — the fruit
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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