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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. march — the month
  3. spring — of water
  4. dip — to sink
  5. cap — a hat
  6. spring — the season
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. march — music
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. march — the month
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. cap — a lid
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cap — of ice
  17. staff — a stick
  18. squash — the sport
  19. spring — a coil
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. squash — to crush
  23. staff — employees
  24. staff — employees

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