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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. spell — a short time
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. cap — a lid
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. ball — a great time
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. spell — letters
  10. ball — a dance
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. spell — magic
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cell — a phone
  15. wound — an injury
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. cap — of ice
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. wound — an injury
  20. cell — in biology
  21. fork — in a road
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — in golf

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