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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — of ice
  3. scale — in music
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. mine — for digging
  6. cap — a lid
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. court — for sport
  11. court — of a king
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. court — of law
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. scale — size or range
  24. mine — belonging to me

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