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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — a hat
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — finally
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. last — final
  9. cap — of ice
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. rest — a break
  12. shower — rain
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. track — a song
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a path
  18. shower — to wash

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