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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. stock — goods
  6. cap — a lid
  7. foot — a measure
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. mug — a cup
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. bound — certain
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — for sport
  15. wind — moving air
  16. mug — to rob
  17. stock — shares
  18. bound — tied together
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mug — a face
  21. cap — of ice
  22. wound — an injury
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. bound — obliged

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