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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  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. cell — in a prison
  2. branch — a division
  3. capital — a city
  4. fine — all right
  5. cap — a hat
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cell — a phone
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. hand — in cards
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. pass — a permit
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. cell — in biology
  18. fine — high quality
  19. hand — help
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. cap — a lid
  23. branch — of a tree
  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