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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. cap — a hat
  3. cap — a lid
  4. squash — the sport
  5. face — to point toward
  6. firm — decided
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. ground — crushed
  10. squash — to crush
  11. firm — a company
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. ground — a position
  15. firm — steady
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. cap — of ice
  19. ground — the earth
  20. land — ground
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. face — to confront
  23. face — part of the head
  24. land — a country

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