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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. spring — of water
  3. cap — of ice
  4. spring — the season
  5. content — the amount
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. game — a match
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. spring — a coil
  10. chair — a leader
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — a break
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. suit — clothes
  16. cap — a lid
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. content — happy
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. rest — what's left
  21. suit — to fit
  22. suit — in cards
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. game — wild animals

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