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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: wake · cap · bark · snap · pound · pit · object · saw

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. pit — a hole
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. object — to protest
  7. cap — a hat
  8. snap — to click
  9. pound — a weight
  10. saw — the tool
  11. object — an aim
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. bark — to shout
  14. object — a thing
  15. saw — the tool
  16. pit — in a race
  17. cap — of ice
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. wake — a trail
  23. cap — a lid
  24. pound — to hit hard

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