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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 116 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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. pop — music
  4. bore — to tire
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. mark — a trace
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. cap — of ice
  11. bore — to drill
  12. cap — a hat
  13. pop — soda
  14. can — a tin
  15. squash — the sport
  16. mark — a grade
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. pop — to visit
  23. squash — to crush
  24. bat — the animal

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