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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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. spell — letters
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. tear — from crying
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. march — the month
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. spell — magic
  12. scale — in music
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a leader
  15. tear — to rip
  16. march — music
  17. cap — a hat
  18. scale — size or range
  19. cap — of ice
  20. present — a gift
  21. tear — from crying
  22. present — there
  23. present — the time now
  24. spell — a short time

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