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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: bowl · stick · chest · tube · lie · snap · cap · bay

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. chest — a box
  5. cap — a hat
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. chest — of your body
  9. tube — a container
  10. lie — to recline
  11. chest — of your body
  12. tube — the underground
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. snap — to click
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. cap — of ice
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. cap — a lid
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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