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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. bore — to tire
  4. cap — a lid
  5. capital — a city
  6. game — a match
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. game — wild animals
  9. bass — low music
  10. hand — help
  11. bass — the fish
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. mark — a trace
  18. deal — to handle
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. capital — money
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. cap — a hat
  24. mark — a grade

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