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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  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. club — for golf
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. mate — a partner
  4. capital — a city
  5. march — the month
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. scale — in music
  8. mate — to breed
  9. club — a group
  10. march — music
  11. roll — a cake
  12. march — the month
  13. scale — size or range
  14. roll — a list
  15. club — for dancing
  16. mate — a friend
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. leaves — lets stay
  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