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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. row — to paddle
  3. cap — a lid
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wake — a trail
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. track — a song
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — the animal
  13. track — a path
  14. cap — a hat
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. track — to keep track
  17. club — for dancing
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. prune — to trim
  21. row — a line
  22. club — a group
  23. club — for golf
  24. bat — in an idiom

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