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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. cap — a lid
  3. last — final
  4. game — a match
  5. roll — a cake
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. shower — to wash
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. can — a tin
  10. cap — of ice
  11. bulb — for light
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. game — wild animals
  14. last — finally
  15. can — a tin
  16. shower — rain
  17. can — to be able to
  18. cap — a hat
  19. last — to go on
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. bulb — for light
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. bulb — of a plant

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