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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 124 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. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. pop — soda
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. shower — to wash
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. drill — a practice
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. content — the amount
  10. chair — a leader
  11. drill — army training
  12. bound — certain
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. cap — a lid
  16. bound — tied together
  17. content — happy
  18. pop — to visit
  19. bound — obliged
  20. pop — music
  21. drill — the tool
  22. cap — of ice
  23. shower — rain
  24. pitcher — a jug

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