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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. charge — electricity
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. drill — army training
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. drill — the tool
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. row — to paddle
  11. cap — of ice
  12. charge — a price
  13. drill — a practice
  14. row — a line
  15. cap — a lid
  16. charge — in control
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. march — music

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