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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. spell — magic
  5. march — the month
  6. spell — letters
  7. track — to keep track
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. track — a path
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. spell — a short time
  12. track — a song
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cap — of ice
  15. tear — from crying
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. tear — to rip
  18. march — music
  19. squash — to crush
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. tear — from crying
  22. cap — a lid
  23. march — the month
  24. squash — the sport

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