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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. pop — to visit
  7. kid — to tease
  8. kid — child
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. game — a match
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. game — wild animals
  15. cap — a lid
  16. rash — a series
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cap — of ice
  19. stem — to come from
  20. pop — music
  21. pop — soda
  22. rash — hasty
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — ministers

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