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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. cap — a hat
  3. prune — to trim
  4. cap — a lid
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. fall — the season
  9. cap — of ice
  10. ball — a dance
  11. wind — moving air
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. hand — help
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. fall — to drop
  18. hand — in cards
  19. prune — to trim
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. fall — to drop
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wind — moving air

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