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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. clip — for paper
  5. tube — a container
  6. cap — of ice
  7. clip — to cut
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. court — of law
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. clip — a video
  12. rush — hurry
  13. wind — moving air
  14. cap — a lid
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. court — for sport
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. wind — moving air
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — the underground
  24. court — of a king

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