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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. game — wild animals
  3. file — a line of people
  4. cap — of ice
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. firm — steady
  9. firm — a company
  10. ball — a great time
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. file — a tool
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. file — a document
  18. game — a match
  19. row — a line
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. cap — a lid
  22. firm — decided
  23. row — to paddle
  24. pitcher — a jug

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