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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cap · trunk · field · cold · land · ruler · pass · kick

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. cap — a lid
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — farmland
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. pass — a permit
  8. land — to come down
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. cold — not warm
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. cap — a hat
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. cold — an illness
  19. field — a subject
  20. cap — of ice
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. land — a country
  23. land — ground
  24. kick — a thrill

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