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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. land — a country
  3. tube — the underground
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. land — ground
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. wake — a trail
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — from a university
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. cap — of ice
  16. tube — a container
  17. land — to come down
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. cap — a hat
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. kick — in football
  22. degree — an amount
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. tube — in a tire

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