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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. cap — of ice
  4. key — the most important part
  5. rash — a series
  6. chest — of your body
  7. key — for a lock
  8. cap — a hat
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. chest — a box
  12. key — in music
  13. fall — to drop
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. fall — the season
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chair — a leader
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. rash — hasty
  22. fall — to drop
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. rash — on the skin

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