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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. row — a line
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. chest — of your body
  6. tube — the underground
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. dip — to sink
  9. chest — of your body
  10. toast — bread
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. cap — of ice
  15. chest — a box
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. cap — a lid
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. row — to paddle
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — a container
  24. dip — to dunk

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