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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. content — happy
  3. land — ground
  4. board — to get on
  5. prune — to trim
  6. roll — a cake
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. present — a gift
  9. present — there
  10. land — to come down
  11. prune — to trim
  12. cap — a hat
  13. present — the time now
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. land — a country
  17. cap — of ice
  18. board — a committee
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. content — the amount
  23. roll — a list
  24. content — videos and posts

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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