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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: race · mine · arm · pit · land · season · cap · pop

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. land — ground
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. land — a country
  5. pit — in a race
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. cap — a lid
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. pop — to visit
  10. land — to come down
  11. season — of the year
  12. race — humankind
  13. pop — music
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. season — in sport
  16. race — a contest
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. cap — of ice
  19. pit — a hole
  20. mine — for digging
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. race — the arms race
  23. pop — soda
  24. arm — part of the body

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