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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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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 · land · fall · squash · rule · tube · cap · current

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. fall — to drop
  3. current — happening now
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. current — electric
  6. fall — to drop
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. tube — the underground
  9. land — to come down
  10. fall — the season
  11. cap — a hat
  12. rule — government
  13. squash — to crush
  14. snap — to click
  15. tube — a container
  16. squash — the sport
  17. land — a country
  18. cap — of ice
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. cap — a lid
  21. land — ground
  22. rule — a law
  23. current — of water
  24. rule — to rule out

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