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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. rush — hurry
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. stand — to bear
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. last — finally
  10. cap — a lid
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pitch — completely
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. last — final
  16. content — the amount
  17. last — to go on
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. content — happy
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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