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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 116 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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. cap — a hat
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. court — of law
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. land — a country
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. drill — a practice
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. drill — army training
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. court — of a king
  16. cap — a lid
  17. drill — the tool
  18. season — of the year
  19. fall — the season
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. season — in sport
  23. court — for sport
  24. fall — to drop

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