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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. season — of the year
  3. spell — magic
  4. snap — to click
  5. cue — a hint
  6. staff — employees
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. fall — to drop
  9. spell — a short time
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. season — in sport
  12. cue — a signal
  13. spell — letters
  14. capital — money
  15. cue — for pool
  16. fall — the season
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. staff — a stick
  19. dip — to sink
  20. fall — to drop
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. staff — employees
  24. dip — a sauce

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