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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. current — of water
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. cap — of ice
  5. bass — low music
  6. chair — a leader
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. current — electric
  9. stock — goods
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. stock — shares
  12. current — happening now
  13. cap — a lid
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. kid — child
  16. lean — to bend
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bass — the fish
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. lean — thin
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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