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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. cap — a hat
  3. cell — a phone
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. can — a tin
  6. cap — of ice
  7. wound — an injury
  8. ground — the earth
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. wound — an injury
  11. ground — a position
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. cell — in biology
  14. can — to be able to
  15. can — a tin
  16. root — of a plant
  17. bark — to shout
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. root — the cause
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. root — of a word
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. ground — crushed

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