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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. cap — a hat
  3. spell — letters
  4. cue — for pool
  5. cap — a lid
  6. cue — a hint
  7. cue — a signal
  8. saw — the tool
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. scale — size or range
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. saw — the tool
  19. cap — of ice
  20. spell — a short time
  21. spell — magic
  22. scale — in music
  23. bark — to shout
  24. nail — on a finger

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