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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. charge — a price
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. charge — in control
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. cap — of ice
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. cap — a lid
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wound — an injury
  14. mug — a face
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. mug — a cup
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. cap — a hat
  20. mug — to rob
  21. charge — electricity
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wake — a trail

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