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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. cap — a lid
  3. bat — the animal
  4. spring — the season
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. can — a tin
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. fall — to drop
  9. spring — of water
  10. can — to be able to
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. bass — low music
  17. fall — the season
  18. fall — to drop
  19. can — a tin
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. foot — a measure
  22. spring — a coil
  23. chair — a leader
  24. cap — a hat

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