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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. fall — to drop
  3. toast — bread
  4. cap — a hat
  5. fall — the season
  6. fall — to drop
  7. rash — a series
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bear — the animal
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — the season
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. press — newspapers
  18. rash — hasty
  19. press — to push
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. spring — of water
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. cap — of ice
  24. press — a publisher

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