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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. chest — of your body
  3. capital — money
  4. stem — to come from
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. pit — a hole
  7. cap — a lid
  8. wind — moving air
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. chest — of your body
  15. wind — moving air
  16. chest — a box
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. pit — in a race
  19. capital — a city
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. cap — a hat
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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