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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. land — a country
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. roll — a list
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. land — to come down
  10. snap — to click
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — to be able to
  13. can — a tin
  14. fine — all right
  15. land — ground
  16. capital — a city
  17. roll — a cake
  18. fine — high quality
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. capital — money
  21. field — for sport
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. field — a subject
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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