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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: snap · chip · court · cell · saw · spring · lash · cap

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. saw — the tool
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. cap — a lid
  5. saw — the tool
  6. cell — a phone
  7. court — for sport
  8. snap — to click
  9. court — of law
  10. chip — for betting
  11. spring — of water
  12. cap — of ice
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. spring — the season
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. chip — to eat
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. cap — a hat
  21. spring — a coil
  22. cell — in biology
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. court — of a king

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