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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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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 · rush · spell · mug · cue · cold · track · ground

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. mug — to rob
  3. ground — the earth
  4. spell — letters
  5. rush — hurry
  6. track — to keep track
  7. cue — a hint
  8. mug — a cup
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. ground — crushed
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — an illness
  13. ground — a position
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. track — a song
  16. spell — a short time
  17. mug — a face
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. cue — a signal
  20. spell — magic
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. track — a path
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cue — for pool

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