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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — for betting
  4. wake — a trail
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. cap — a lid
  7. bound — certain
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bound — obliged
  10. tube — the underground
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. plane — a tool
  14. mug — a cup
  15. bat — the animal
  16. cap — of ice
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. tube — a container
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. bound — tied together
  23. mug — to rob
  24. mug — a face

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