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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. wind — moving air
  3. fine — high quality
  4. cap — of ice
  5. current — happening now
  6. clip — for paper
  7. current — electric
  8. clip — a video
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. clip — to cut
  15. stock — goods
  16. cap — a lid
  17. fine — all right
  18. current — of water

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