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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. suit — clothes
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. bore — to tire
  5. bass — the fish
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cap — a lid
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. suit — to fit
  11. bass — low music
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. club — for dancing
  15. sharp — clever
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. suit — in cards
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. club — for golf
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bore — to drill
  23. club — a group
  24. bat — the animal

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