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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bore — to tire
  3. bore — to drill
  4. spell — letters
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. spell — a short time
  7. capital — money
  8. capital — a city
  9. sharp — clever
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. rash — hasty
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bass — low music
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. cap — a lid
  17. bass — the fish
  18. rash — a series
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. cap — of ice
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. spell — magic
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. rash — on the skin

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