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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. field — farmland
  3. date — the fruit
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. present — there
  7. present — a gift
  8. rock — music
  9. rock — a stone
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cap — a lid
  12. field — a subject
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. toast — bread
  16. field — for sport
  17. row — a line
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. rush — hurry
  20. present — the time now
  21. row — to paddle
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. date — on the calendar

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