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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 120 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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — a phone
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. staff — employees
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. cap — of ice
  13. march — the month
  14. cap — a hat
  15. mine — for digging
  16. pass — a permit
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. staff — employees
  19. kid — to tease
  20. march — the month
  21. kid — child
  22. march — music
  23. staff — a stick
  24. stand — to bear

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