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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. craft — boats
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. season — of the year
  5. craft — a skill
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. key — the most important part
  9. lean — to bend
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — the season
  12. lean — thin
  13. spring — a coil
  14. season — in sport
  15. rash — hasty
  16. cap — of ice
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. cap — a lid
  19. key — in music
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. rash — a series
  22. squash — the sport
  23. squash — to crush
  24. key — for a lock

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