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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 · pit · clip · jam · pass · face · pitch · plane

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. pass — a permit
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — to cut
  6. face — to confront
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pitch — completely
  14. pit — in a race
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. pit — a hole
  17. face — to point toward
  18. plane — a tool
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. snap — to click
  22. face — part of the head
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. clip — a video

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