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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. can — a tin
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cap — a hat
  6. rush — hurry
  7. face — to confront
  8. bark — to shout
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. kid — child
  11. degree — an amount
  12. can — to be able to
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. degree — temperature
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. kid — to tease
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. face — to point toward
  21. degree — from a university
  22. face — part of the head
  23. can — a tin
  24. bark — of a tree

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