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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 116 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. season — of the year
  3. scale — in music
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. hand — help
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. mug — to rob
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a lid
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. degree — an amount
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. degree — temperature
  15. hand — in cards
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. mug — a cup
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. scale — size or range
  21. mug — a face
  22. season — in sport
  23. degree — from a university
  24. hand — part of the body

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