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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — a hat
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. swing — to play on
  5. cap — of ice
  6. field — farmland
  7. press — to push
  8. swing — music
  9. degree — an amount
  10. press — a publisher
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. fall — to drop
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. field — for sport
  16. press — newspapers
  17. degree — temperature
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. swing — in golf
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. field — a subject
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — the season
  24. degree — from a university

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