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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. tear — from crying
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. content — the amount
  5. cap — of ice
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. cap — a lid
  8. content — happy
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. tear — from crying
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. tear — to rip
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. toast — bread

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