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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. capital — money
  3. track — a path
  4. face — to point toward
  5. cap — a hat
  6. capital — a city
  7. branch — a division
  8. track — to keep track
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. charge — a price
  14. track — a song
  15. charge — in control
  16. charge — electricity
  17. face — part of the head
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. cap — of ice
  20. cap — a lid
  21. face — to confront
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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