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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. march — the month
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. chest — of your body
  6. march — the month
  7. cap — a hat
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. cap — of ice
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. march — music
  14. fine — high quality
  15. root — of a word
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. snap — to click
  18. fine — all right
  19. root — of a plant
  20. root — the cause
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — a match
  24. game — wild animals

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