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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 120 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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. capital — money
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. saw — the tool
  9. charge — a price
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — the animal
  12. charge — in control
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. saw — the tool
  15. ball — a dance
  16. ball — a great time
  17. charge — electricity
  18. leaves — to go away

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