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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cue — a signal
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a line of people
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. cue — a hint
  8. bound — tied together
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. land — a country
  11. land — to come down
  12. cap — of ice
  13. bound — certain
  14. drill — a practice
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. land — ground
  17. bound — obliged
  18. file — a tool
  19. mark — a grade
  20. mark — a trace
  21. cap — a lid
  22. cue — for pool
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — the tool

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