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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 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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. firm — steady
  3. cap — a lid
  4. firm — a company
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. firm — decided
  8. shower — rain
  9. cap — of ice
  10. spring — the season
  11. spring — of water
  12. present — there
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. wake — a trail
  16. present — a gift
  17. spring — a coil
  18. present — the time now

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