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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. court — of law
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. current — of water
  9. court — of a king
  10. current — electric
  11. season — in sport
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rash — hasty
  14. prune — to trim
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. cap — a lid
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. season — of the year
  21. rash — a series
  22. court — for sport
  23. current — happening now
  24. cap — a hat

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