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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cap — a hat
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. net — after costs
  6. lean — to bend
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. fall — to drop
  9. court — for sport
  10. fall — to drop
  11. craft — boats
  12. net — in sport
  13. rock — music
  14. court — of a king
  15. net — for catching
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. lean — thin
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. rock — a stone
  21. craft — a skill
  22. fall — the season
  23. court — of law
  24. craft — a handicraft

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