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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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. cap — a lid
  3. cap — of ice
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. court — of law
  8. charge — electricity
  9. bark — to shout
  10. chest — of your body
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. charge — a price
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. snap — to click
  15. chest — of your body
  16. court — of a king
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. court — for sport
  19. chest — a box
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. cap — a hat
  22. charge — in control
  23. dip — to sink
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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