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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 116 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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. net — for catching
  3. face — part of the head
  4. track — to keep track
  5. track — a path
  6. rule — government
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. track — a song
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. cap — of ice
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. net — after costs
  13. last — to go on
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. last — final
  16. squash — the sport
  17. net — in sport
  18. rule — a law
  19. mine — for digging
  20. face — to confront
  21. cap — a lid
  22. squash — to crush
  23. last — finally
  24. face — to point toward

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