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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. stand — to bear
  4. tear — to rip
  5. chair — a leader
  6. cap — a lid
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. kick — in football
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. march — music
  12. key — the most important part
  13. tear — from crying
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. snap — to click
  16. key — in music
  17. march — the month
  18. key — for a lock
  19. cap — of ice
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. march — the month
  22. tear — from crying
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. cap — a hat

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