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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 120 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. David sat on the ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. swing — to play on
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. fall — to drop
  5. chair — a leader
  6. cap — of ice
  7. stock — goods
  8. chip — for betting
  9. fall — to drop
  10. stock — shares
  11. swing — music
  12. cap — a lid
  13. club — for golf
  14. mine — for digging
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. swing — in golf
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. chip — to eat
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. club — a group
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. club — for dancing
  24. fall — the season

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