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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. mine — for digging
  3. root — the cause
  4. wound — an injury
  5. track — a song
  6. root — of a word
  7. cap — a lid
  8. band — a ring
  9. bore — to drill
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. ball — a dance
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. ball — a great time
  15. root — of a plant
  16. track — a path
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. bore — to tire
  20. band — a music group
  21. cap — of ice
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. wound — an injury
  24. track — to keep track

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