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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. race — a contest
  4. degree — temperature
  5. cap — of ice
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. staff — employees
  9. lie — to recline
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. staff — a stick
  12. wound — an injury
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — an amount
  15. wound — an injury
  16. race — the arms race
  17. band — a ring
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. band — a music group
  20. race — humankind
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. staff — employees
  24. cap — a lid

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