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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 120 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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cap — a hat
  5. swing — music
  6. cap — a lid
  7. spring — the season
  8. bulb — for light
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. cue — a signal
  13. shower — rain
  14. cue — for pool
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. swing — to play on
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. spring — of water
  19. cap — of ice
  20. bulb — for light
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. swing — in golf
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. snap — to click

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