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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
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: spring · cap · cold · craft · cabinet · toast · face · ground

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. toast — bread
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cold — not warm
  5. craft — boats
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cap — a hat
  8. spring — the season
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. ground — crushed
  12. spring — a coil
  13. face — part of the head
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. ground — a position
  17. spring — of water
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cold — an illness
  20. face — to point toward
  21. face — to confront
  22. ground — the earth
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. craft — a skill

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