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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 116 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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. drill — the tool
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. track — to keep track
  6. march — the month
  7. key — in music
  8. cell — in biology
  9. chip — to eat
  10. drill — army training
  11. track — a path
  12. chip — for betting
  13. march — the month
  14. game — a match
  15. cell — a phone
  16. drill — a practice
  17. game — wild animals
  18. cap — a lid
  19. march — music
  20. key — for a lock
  21. track — a song
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. cap — of ice
  24. key — the most important part

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