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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: cap · march · mug · spring · race · chair · temple · fan

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. cap — a lid
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. mug — a cup
  6. spring — of water
  7. cap — of ice
  8. march — the month
  9. march — music
  10. mug — to rob
  11. spring — a coil
  12. race — a contest
  13. mug — a face
  14. cap — a hat
  15. march — the month
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. race — the arms race
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. spring — the season
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. race — humankind

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