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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. rash — hasty
  3. cap — a lid
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. cap — of ice
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. hand — help
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. rash — a series
  10. shower — to wash
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. shower — rain
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. field — farmland
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — the animal
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. stand — to bear
  19. field — a subject
  20. field — for sport
  21. hand — in cards
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. safe — a strongbox

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