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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. lean — to bend
  3. suit — to fit
  4. spell — letters
  5. spell — a short time
  6. suit — clothes
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. cap — of ice
  11. lean — thin
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. degree — from a university
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. spell — magic
  16. cap — a hat
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. degree — an amount
  19. suit — in cards
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. deal — to handle
  23. degree — temperature
  24. tear — to rip

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