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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. squash — the sport
  4. hand — help
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. squash — to crush
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. cap — of ice
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. ground — crushed
  13. pit — in a race
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. pit — a hole
  16. snap — to click
  17. hand — in cards
  18. ground — a position
  19. cap — a hat
  20. sharp — clever
  21. ground — the earth
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. cap — a lid
  24. sharp — exactly

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