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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. shower — to wash
  3. face — part of the head
  4. mug — a cup
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. mug — a face
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. present — a gift
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. present — the time now
  12. date — the fruit
  13. roll — a list
  14. face — to point toward
  15. roll — a cake
  16. cap — of ice
  17. face — to confront
  18. shower — rain
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. mug — to rob
  21. cap — a lid
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. present — there

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