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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. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. bank — of a river
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. clip — for paper
  6. staff — employees
  7. cap — of ice
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. clip — a video
  10. bank — for money
  11. spell — magic
  12. roll — a cake
  13. spell — a short time
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. spell — letters
  16. clip — to cut
  17. staff — employees
  18. wake — a trail
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bank — for money
  22. roll — a list
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. staff — a stick

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