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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 124 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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468
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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. swing — in golf
  4. chair — a leader
  5. snap — to click
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. cap — a lid
  9. game — wild animals
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. game — a match
  12. swing — to play on
  13. wake — a trail
  14. swing — music
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. deal — to handle
  24. perch — the fish

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