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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. pop — soda
  4. cap — a lid
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. race — a contest
  7. mate — a friend
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wake — a trail
  10. chest — a box
  11. net — for catching
  12. mate — a partner
  13. chest — of your body
  14. net — in sport
  15. race — the arms race
  16. cap — of ice
  17. mate — to breed
  18. net — after costs
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. race — humankind
  22. pop — music
  23. pop — to visit
  24. chest — of your body

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