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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. fall — to drop
  5. race — the arms race
  6. game — wild animals
  7. race — humankind
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. capital — money
  10. wound — an injury
  11. pass — a permit
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. fine — all right
  15. fine — high quality
  16. wound — an injury
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. capital — a city
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. game — a match
  21. fall — the season
  22. fall — to drop
  23. race — a contest
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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