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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — a lid
  3. drill — a practice
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. prune — to trim
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. stock — goods
  8. race — humankind
  9. current — of water
  10. current — happening now
  11. drill — the tool
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. drill — army training
  16. stock — shares
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. current — electric
  19. race — the arms race
  20. race — a contest
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. cap — of ice
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wake — a trail

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