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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. land — a country
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. last — finally
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. deal — to handle
  7. season — in sport
  8. perch — the fish
  9. land — ground
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. craft — boats
  13. capital — money
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. craft — a skill
  16. land — to come down
  17. last — to go on
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. last — final
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. season — of the year

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