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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. cap — a hat
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. capital — money
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. board — a committee
  8. shower — rain
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. spell — magic
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. mark — a grade
  15. spell — letters
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. shower — to wash
  18. cap — a lid
  19. mark — a trace
  20. board — to get on
  21. cap — of ice
  22. capital — a city
  23. bat — the animal
  24. spell — a short time

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