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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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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: mark · snap · jam · kid · tube · fall · cap · last

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. cap — of ice
  3. kid — child
  4. fall — to drop
  5. tube — a container
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. fall — the season
  9. last — final
  10. last — finally
  11. cap — a lid
  12. last — to go on
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mark — a grade
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. cap — a hat
  19. snap — to click
  20. mark — a trace
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. kid — to tease
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. jam — a tight spot

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