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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: object · tube · mug · field · face · rule · cap · snap

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. snap — to click
  3. field — a subject
  4. object — a thing
  5. mug — a cup
  6. object — an aim
  7. rule — government
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. object — to protest
  10. cap — of ice
  11. tube — a container
  12. field — for sport
  13. face — to confront
  14. field — farmland
  15. face — part of the head
  16. rule — a law
  17. mug — to rob
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. tube — the underground
  20. mug — a face
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. cap — a lid
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. face — to point toward

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