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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. race — a contest
  3. cap — a hat
  4. cap — of ice
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. race — humankind
  7. can — a tin
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. season — in sport
  10. dip — to sink
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. face — part of the head
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. cap — a lid
  15. race — the arms race
  16. face — to point toward
  17. can — a tin
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. wind — moving air
  21. season — of the year
  22. face — to confront
  23. snap — to click
  24. wind — moving air

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