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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. mug — a face
  3. cap — a hat
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. cap — a lid
  7. squash — to crush
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. date — the fruit
  10. squash — the sport
  11. cell — in biology
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. snap — to click
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. stem — to come from
  18. mug — a cup
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. bulb — for light
  21. cell — a phone
  22. bulb — for light
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. cap — of ice

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