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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cap — a hat
  3. season — in sport
  4. rock — a stone
  5. cell — a phone
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. stem — to come from
  8. clip — to cut
  9. cap — of ice
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — the animal
  12. rock — music
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. clip — for paper
  15. cap — a lid
  16. cell — in biology
  17. season — of the year
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. rule — a law
  23. rule — government
  24. clip — a video

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