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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — a lid
  3. can — a tin
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. roll — a list
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. club — for dancing
  10. can — to be able to
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. can — a tin
  13. cold — not warm
  14. club — a group
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bore — to drill
  18. pass — a permit
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. cap — of ice
  21. club — for golf
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. cold — an illness
  24. roll — a cake

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