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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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. tear — to rip
  6. scale — size or range
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — to play on
  10. scale — in music
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cap — a lid
  14. bore — to tire
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. cap — of ice
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bore — to drill
  19. mate — a friend
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. mate — to breed
  22. swing — music
  23. mate — a partner
  24. foot — a measure

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