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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bass — the fish
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. bass — low music
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. bank — for money
  12. bank — for money
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. bank — of a river
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. cap — a hat
  17. saw — the tool
  18. cap — a lid

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