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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. current — of water
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — a phone
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. cap — of ice
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. current — electric
  10. craft — a skill
  11. cap — a lid
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. spring — a coil
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wax — to grow
  16. spring — the season
  17. craft — boats
  18. spring — of water
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. saw — the tool
  22. current — happening now
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. ruler — a monarch

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