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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. cap — of ice
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. cap — a lid
  5. row — a line
  6. can — a tin
  7. ground — the earth
  8. branch — a division
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. ground — a position
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. march — the month
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. ground — crushed
  21. row — to paddle
  22. can — a tin
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. row — a quarrel

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