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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — the most important part
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. tube — a container
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. rash — hasty
  10. kid — child
  11. clip — a video
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. key — in music
  14. clip — to cut
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. cap — of ice
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. clip — for paper
  21. cap — a lid
  22. kid — to tease
  23. rash — a series
  24. deal — to handle

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