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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. row — a line
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. clip — for paper
  6. cap — a hat
  7. cue — a signal
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — a video
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cue — a hint
  12. snap — to click
  13. land — a country
  14. cue — for pool
  15. mark — a grade
  16. fall — to drop
  17. cap — a lid
  18. land — to come down
  19. mark — a trace
  20. fall — the season
  21. fall — to drop
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. land — ground
  24. row — a quarrel

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