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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 120 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: key · race · pass · perch · snap · trunk · squash · cap

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. key — the most important part
  3. pass — a permit
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. cap — a lid
  6. snap — to click
  7. cap — of ice
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. key — in music
  10. cap — a hat
  11. perch — the fish
  12. squash — to crush
  13. race — humankind
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. race — the arms race
  20. squash — the sport
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. key — for a lock
  23. race — a contest
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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