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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. cold — not warm
  4. fall — to drop
  5. track — a path
  6. cold — an illness
  7. fall — the season
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. degree — from a university
  10. track — to keep track
  11. track — a song
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. bulb — for light
  14. cap — a lid
  15. chip — to eat
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. degree — temperature
  18. fall — to drop
  19. tube — a container
  20. degree — an amount
  21. bulb — for light
  22. chip — for betting
  23. cap — of ice
  24. tube — the underground

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