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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — of ice
  3. mine — for digging
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. content — happy
  8. press — a publisher
  9. rule — government
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. press — newspapers
  12. press — to push
  13. cap — a lid
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pop — music
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. pop — soda
  18. branch — a division
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. content — the amount
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. rule — a law

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