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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. tear — to rip
  3. swing — in golf
  4. degree — an amount
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. fine — high quality
  8. branch — a division
  9. cap — of ice
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — a position
  13. fine — all right
  14. ground — the earth
  15. craft — a skill
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — temperature
  19. cap — a lid
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. craft — boats
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — music

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