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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. The water is too ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cold — not warm
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. face — part of the head
  6. roll — a list
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. cap — of ice
  10. cap — a lid
  11. clip — a video
  12. face — to confront
  13. clip — to cut
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. race — the arms race
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. race — a contest
  18. roll — a cake
  19. race — humankind
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. clip — for paper
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. face — to point toward

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