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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. file — a line of people
  4. season — of the year
  5. cell — a phone
  6. file — a document
  7. cap — of ice
  8. squash — to crush
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a partner
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. kid — child
  16. file — a tool
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. cap — a lid
  20. kid — to tease
  21. season — in sport
  22. squash — the sport
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. mate — a friend

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