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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. spell — magic
  4. capital — a city
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. spell — a short time
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cap — a lid
  9. rash — a series
  10. stock — shares
  11. pop — to visit
  12. pop — soda
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. file — a document
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. file — a tool
  17. pop — music
  18. stock — goods
  19. rash — hasty
  20. cap — of ice
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. spell — letters
  23. file — a line of people
  24. rash — on the skin

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