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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. mate — a partner
  4. capital — a city
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. march — music
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. bear — the animal
  9. march — the month
  10. bear — the animal
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. march — the month
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. capital — money
  16. mate — to breed
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. mate — a friend

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