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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 120 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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. rash — a series
  4. rash — hasty
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. track — a song
  8. band — a ring
  9. mug — a cup
  10. cap — of ice
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. mug — to rob
  13. mine — for digging
  14. race — humankind
  15. mug — a face
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. track — a path
  19. race — the arms race
  20. cap — a lid
  21. track — to keep track
  22. band — a music group
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. race — a contest

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