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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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. snap — to speak sharply
  4. wound — an injury
  5. race — the arms race
  6. wound — an injury
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. craft — boats
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. race — a contest
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. craft — a skill
  14. snap — to click
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. race — humankind
  17. staff — employees
  18. row — to paddle
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. row — a line
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. staff — a stick
  23. staff — employees
  24. cap — of ice

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