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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  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 click
  2. squash — to crush
  3. spring — of water
  4. race — humankind
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. rule — government
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. rule — a law
  13. squash — the sport
  14. vault — a safe
  15. race — the arms race
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. spring — a coil
  19. spring — the season
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. race — a contest
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. pitch — completely
  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