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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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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: row · spring · cabinet · kid · scale · lie · bear · cap

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. bear — the animal
  3. scale — size or range
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. scale — in music
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. kid — to tease
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. cap — a hat
  15. spring — of water
  16. row — a line
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. lie — to recline
  19. spring — a coil
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cap — of ice
  23. row — to paddle
  24. cap — a lid

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