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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 116 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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. track — a path
  3. net — after costs
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. content — the amount
  7. suit — clothes
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. fine — all right
  10. content — happy
  11. track — a song
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fine — high quality
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — for catching
  16. suit — to fit
  17. suit — in cards
  18. track — to keep track

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