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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. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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. plane — a tool
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. cap — of ice
  7. current — electric
  8. hand — help
  9. pit — in a race
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. pit — a hole
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. current — of water
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cell — in biology
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. hand — in cards
  23. date — the fruit
  24. current — happening now

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