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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.

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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. stem — to come from
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. face — to confront
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. cap — of ice
  9. wake — a trail
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. face — to point toward
  12. cap — a lid
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. pit — a hole
  15. pit — in a race
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — child
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. craft — a skill
  20. kid — to tease
  21. face — part of the head
  22. chair — a leader
  23. craft — boats
  24. chair — to sit on

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