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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: club · cap · rash · hand · bear · clip · wave · suit

  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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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. bear — the animal
  4. suit — clothes
  5. clip — a video
  6. club — a group
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. cap — of ice
  10. clip — for paper
  11. rash — hasty
  12. clip — to cut
  13. rash — a series
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. hand — in cards
  16. suit — in cards
  17. suit — to fit
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. club — for dancing
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. hand — help
  23. bear — the animal
  24. club — for golf

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