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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — a hat
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. pitch — completely
  5. season — of the year
  6. field — farmland
  7. fall — to drop
  8. rule — government
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. fall — the season
  12. cap — of ice
  13. season — in sport
  14. wound — an injury
  15. rule — a law
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. cell — in biology
  18. wound — an injury
  19. field — for sport
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. cell — a phone
  22. fall — to drop
  23. field — a subject
  24. pitch — a sports field

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