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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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Word bank
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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cell — a phone
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. pass — a permit
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. wound — an injury
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cap — of ice
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. row — a line
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. wound — an injury
  23. row — to paddle
  24. pass — to succeed

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