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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: cap · press · foot · cell · track · wind · bat · march

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cap — a lid
  3. cell — a phone
  4. foot — a measure
  5. cap — of ice
  6. track — a song
  7. press — to push
  8. cell — in biology
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. march — music
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. march — the month
  13. press — newspapers
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. march — the month
  18. cap — a hat
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. track — a path
  21. wind — moving air
  22. press — a publisher
  23. track — to keep track
  24. bat — 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