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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. date — the fruit
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. fall — to drop
  6. cap — of ice
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. bear — the animal
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. cold — an illness
  11. fall — to drop
  12. perch — the fish
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bear — the animal
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. fall — the season
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bound — certain
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bound — tied together
  23. cap — a hat
  24. bound — obliged

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