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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. court — of a king
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. degree — an amount
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. cap — a hat
  12. band — a ring
  13. degree — temperature
  14. lean — thin
  15. court — of law
  16. stem — to come from
  17. lean — to bend
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. court — for sport
  21. band — a music group
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. cap — a lid
  24. degree — from a university

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