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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. dip — to sink
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cap — a hat
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. can — a tin
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. bat — the animal
  16. can — to be able to
  17. branch — a division
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. wax — to grow
  20. can — a tin
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. branch — of a tree

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