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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. can — a tin
  5. cue — a hint
  6. land — to come down
  7. chest — a box
  8. can — to be able to
  9. snap — to click
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. key — the most important part
  12. cue — a signal
  13. key — in music
  14. land — a country
  15. land — ground
  16. cue — for pool
  17. can — a tin
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. chest — of your body
  20. key — for a lock
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — for betting

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