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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. face — to confront
  4. court — of a king
  5. mark — a trace
  6. court — for sport
  7. rule — a law
  8. net — in sport
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. court — of law
  12. mark — a grade
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. net — after costs
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cap — a lid
  17. content — happy
  18. net — for catching
  19. content — the amount
  20. rule — government
  21. bulb — for light
  22. face — part of the head
  23. bulb — for light
  24. face — to point toward

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