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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. spell — a short time
  6. lean — to bend
  7. snap — to click
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. chip — for betting
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. lean — thin
  14. bear — the animal
  15. chip — to eat
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. spell — magic
  18. rock — a stone
  19. capital — money
  20. spell — letters
  21. toast — bread
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. bear — the animal

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