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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. field — farmland
  3. cap — a hat
  4. snap — to click
  5. bear — the animal
  6. object — to protest
  7. march — the month
  8. cap — a lid
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. craft — a skill
  11. field — a subject
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. field — for sport
  16. cap — of ice
  17. object — an aim
  18. object — a thing
  19. clip — to cut
  20. craft — boats
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. clip — a video
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. clip — for paper

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