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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 124 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: snap · cap · pound · toast · chest · stick

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. cap — a hat
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. cap — a lid
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. chest — a box
  8. cap — of ice
  9. snap — to click
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. toast — bread
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — of your body
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. pound — a weight
  18. toast — a drink to someone

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