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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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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: arm · bat · roll · tear · cap · rock · fork · pound

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. roll — a list
  4. rock — a stone
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. tear — to rip
  8. cap — a lid
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. rock — music
  11. roll — a cake
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cap — of ice
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bat — the animal
  16. fork — in a road
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. pound — a weight
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. arm — part of the body

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