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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 · cabinet · march · can · bound · dip · current · fall

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. can — a tin
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. march — the month
  6. current — of water
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. can — a tin
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. fall — the season
  12. bound — tied together
  13. bound — certain
  14. march — the month
  15. march — music
  16. can — to be able to
  17. bound — obliged
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. current — electric
  20. dip — to sink
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to click
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. current — happening now

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