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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. land — ground
  3. cell — in biology
  4. ball — a great time
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. ball — a dance
  8. land — a country
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. cap — a lid
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. swing — music
  13. bark — to shout
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cell — a phone
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. land — to come down
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. swing — in golf
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. swing — to play on

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