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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. present — there
  3. board — a committee
  4. clip — for paper
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. land — a country
  7. present — the time now
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. squash — to crush
  10. clip — to cut
  11. present — a gift
  12. capital — a city
  13. staff — employees
  14. land — to come down
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. staff — employees
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. board — to get on
  20. staff — a stick
  21. squash — the sport
  22. land — ground
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. clip — a video

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