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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. degree — an amount
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. content — happy
  5. spell — magic
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. board — to get on
  9. cap — of ice
  10. spell — letters
  11. foot — a measure
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. content — the amount
  14. degree — temperature
  15. spell — a short time
  16. cap — a lid
  17. degree — from a university
  18. board — a committee

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