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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. cap — of ice
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cap — a lid
  6. face — to confront
  7. face — to point toward
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — the fish
  10. bass — low music
  11. bass — the fish
  12. bear — the animal
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. saw — the tool
  16. mine — for digging
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. pop — to visit
  22. pop — music
  23. face — part of the head
  24. cap — a hat

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