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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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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: dip · straw · cap · mate · wind · snap · march · suit

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. cap — of ice
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. march — the month
  7. suit — clothes
  8. march — the month
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mate — a friend
  11. cap — a hat
  12. suit — to fit
  13. suit — in cards
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. wind — moving air
  16. mate — to breed
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wind — moving air
  19. dip — to sink
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. march — music
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. cap — a lid
  24. snap — to click

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