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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — a lid
  3. ground — a position
  4. net — after costs
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. swing — in golf
  7. net — for catching
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. swing — music
  10. net — in sport
  11. toast — bread
  12. swing — to play on
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tube — a container
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. wax — to grow
  18. ground — the earth
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. ground — crushed
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. cap — of ice
  24. tube — the underground

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