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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. track — a song
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. cap — of ice
  5. mark — a grade
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. sharp — clever
  8. mark — a trace
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — from crying
  12. hand — help
  13. track — to keep track
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. craft — a skill
  17. hand — in cards
  18. cap — a hat
  19. prune — to trim
  20. track — a path
  21. tear — to rip
  22. craft — boats
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. prune — to trim

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