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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bass — low music
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lean — to bend
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. wound — an injury
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. chip — to eat
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. cap — of ice
  11. bass — the fish
  12. lean — thin
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. cap — a lid
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. kick — in football
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. wound — an injury
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. chip — for betting

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