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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 120 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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. lean — thin
  3. current — of water
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. last — final
  8. spring — of water
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. cell — a phone
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. spring — the season
  13. spring — a coil
  14. last — to go on
  15. cap — of ice
  16. last — finally
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. cell — in biology
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. current — electric
  23. lean — to bend
  24. current — happening now

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