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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. fall — the season
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — in sport
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. cap — of ice
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. present — the time now
  10. degree — an amount
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. degree — temperature
  13. cap — a hat
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. fall — to drop
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — in cards
  18. present — a gift
  19. present — there
  20. degree — from a university
  21. hand — help
  22. fall — to drop
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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