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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. face — to confront
  3. shower — rain
  4. face — to point toward
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. shower — to wash
  7. rash — a series
  8. degree — from a university
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. rash — hasty
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bulb — for light
  17. degree — an amount
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cap — of ice
  20. bat — the animal
  21. cap — a lid
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. degree — temperature

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