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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.

Make a worksheet

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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a city
  4. saw — the tool
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. ball — a great time
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. saw — the tool
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. ball — a dance
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. field — farmland
  15. field — for sport
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. field — a subject
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. prune — to trim
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. prune — to trim
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. ball — a round shape

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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