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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cap — a hat
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. tube — a container
  9. spring — of water
  10. perch — the fish
  11. tube — the underground
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. spring — a coil
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. march — the month
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. spring — the season
  21. march — music
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cap — a lid
  24. hide — to keep secret

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