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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. wound — an injury
  3. cap — a hat
  4. game — wild animals
  5. date — the fruit
  6. can — a tin
  7. cap — a lid
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. net — after costs
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. wound — an injury
  12. net — in sport
  13. cap — of ice
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. net — for catching
  19. can — a tin
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. pound — a weight
  23. can — to be able to
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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