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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to click
  3. current — happening now
  4. ground — crushed
  5. prune — to trim
  6. ground — the earth
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. current — electric
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. ground — a position
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. present — the time now
  15. prune — to trim
  16. march — the month
  17. cap — of ice
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. present — there
  20. stem — to come from
  21. cap — a hat
  22. present — a gift
  23. current — of water
  24. cap — a lid

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