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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. 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 — a hat
  2. content — happy
  3. race — the arms race
  4. net — for catching
  5. content — the amount
  6. capital — money
  7. net — after costs
  8. capital — a city
  9. cap — of ice
  10. last — finally
  11. net — in sport
  12. last — to go on
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. cue — for pool
  15. race — a contest
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. cue — a signal
  19. cue — a hint
  20. last — final
  21. lie — to recline
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. race — humankind
  24. 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