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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. file — a line of people
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cap — a lid
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. date — the fruit
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. object — an aim
  12. board — to get on
  13. capital — money
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. capital — a city
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. file — a tool
  19. board — a committee
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. object — a thing
  22. object — to protest
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. file — a document

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