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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: cold · kid · rule · cap · saw · rest · mark · safe

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. rule — government
  3. rest — what's left
  4. mark — a trace
  5. cap — of ice
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — child
  11. rest — what's left
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. saw — the tool
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. cold — not warm
  18. rest — a break
  19. cap — a lid
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. mark — a grade
  22. saw — the tool
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. rule — a law

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