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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: cap · capital · chest · pop · prune · roll · lie · mouse

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. pop — to visit
  3. chest — of your body
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. chest — of your body
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. cap — a lid
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. pop — soda
  10. capital — money
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. pop — music
  13. cap — of ice
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. chest — a box
  16. prune — to trim
  17. capital — a city
  18. lie — to recline
  19. roll — a list
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. roll — a cake
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. prune — to trim
  24. mouse — the animal

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