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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bat — the animal
  4. cap — of ice
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bound — obliged
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. squash — the sport
  10. bound — certain
  11. cap — a lid
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. squash — to crush
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. bound — tied together
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. snap — to click
  24. bat — for baseball

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