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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 120 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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. cap — a hat
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. dip — to sink
  5. board — a committee
  6. degree — temperature
  7. degree — from a university
  8. file — a line of people
  9. season — in sport
  10. file — a tool
  11. shower — to wash
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. degree — an amount
  16. season — of the year
  17. board — to get on
  18. cap — a lid
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. file — a document
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — rain
  24. dip — to dunk

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