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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. root — the cause
  3. root — of a word
  4. cap — a hat
  5. bear — the animal
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. shower — to wash
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. bear — the animal
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. cap — of ice
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. shower — rain
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. root — of a plant
  22. cap — a lid
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. capital — money

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