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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. present — a gift
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. root — of a word
  6. root — the cause
  7. cold — an illness
  8. band — a music group
  9. cap — a lid
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. bound — obliged
  12. cold — not warm
  13. perch — the fish
  14. present — there
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. bound — certain
  18. root — of a plant
  19. rash — a series
  20. present — the time now
  21. cap — of ice
  22. band — a ring
  23. rash — hasty
  24. bound — tied together

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