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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. squash — the sport
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. bound — certain
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bound — tied together
  7. mug — a face
  8. squash — to crush
  9. game — wild animals
  10. snap — to click
  11. bank — for money
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. cap — of ice
  14. bank — of a river
  15. mug — a cup
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. cap — a hat
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bank — for money
  22. mug — to rob
  23. bound — obliged
  24. game — a match

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