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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — a hat
  3. rush — hurry
  4. mine — for digging
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. snap — to click
  7. cap — of ice
  8. chest — of your body
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bass — the fish
  13. club — for dancing
  14. club — for golf
  15. chest — a box
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. bass — low music
  23. chest — of your body
  24. club — a group

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