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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 can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. cap — of ice
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. field — a subject
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. cap — a lid
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. press — a publisher
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cue — a hint
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — for sport
  18. press — newspapers
  19. snap — to click
  20. cue — a signal
  21. press — to push
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. lash — an eyelash

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