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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 120 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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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: ball · rush · cabinet · last · row · cap · net · dip

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — a lid
  3. last — finally
  4. net — for catching
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. net — in sport
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. rush — hurry
  11. dip — to sink
  12. last — final
  13. ball — a great time
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. ball — a dance
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. row — a line
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. cap — of ice
  21. last — to go on
  22. row — to paddle
  23. net — after costs
  24. ball — a round shape

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