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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 120 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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. ground — a position
  4. net — after costs
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. ground — the earth
  7. shower — rain
  8. net — in sport
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cap — a hat
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. key — in music
  15. club — for dancing
  16. kick — in football
  17. club — a group
  18. key — the most important part
  19. key — for a lock
  20. net — for catching
  21. ground — crushed
  22. shower — to wash
  23. branch — a division
  24. club — for golf

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