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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — magic
  4. cell — a phone
  5. key — in music
  6. craft — boats
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. cap — a lid
  9. cell — in biology
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. key — for a lock
  13. spell — a short time
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pop — music
  16. craft — a skill
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. cap — of ice
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. pop — soda
  23. key — the most important part
  24. mine — for digging

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