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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 116 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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bear — the animal
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. mine — for digging
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. bear — the animal
  10. capital — money
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. stock — shares
  13. wound — an injury
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. wound — an injury
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. stock — goods
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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