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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: bound · cold · bat · object · cap · stick · field · net

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — a hat
  3. object — an aim
  4. net — after costs
  5. object — to protest
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bat — the animal
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. object — a thing
  11. net — for catching
  12. cap — of ice
  13. field — farmland
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. bound — certain
  16. cold — not warm
  17. net — in sport
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. field — for sport
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. cold — an illness
  23. field — a subject
  24. bound — tied together

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