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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: pop · degree · cabinet · arm · saw · cap · date · chest

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. pop — soda
  3. cap — a lid
  4. degree — from a university
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. degree — an amount
  8. saw — the tool
  9. date — the fruit
  10. cap — a hat
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. chest — of your body
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pop — to visit
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. chest — a box
  22. degree — temperature
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pop — music

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