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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. fine — high quality
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. fall — the season
  7. bass — low music
  8. capital — a city
  9. fall — to drop
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. capital — money
  12. press — a publisher
  13. field — for sport
  14. board — to get on
  15. field — farmland
  16. fine — all right
  17. fall — to drop
  18. mine — for digging
  19. field — a subject
  20. bass — the fish
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. board — a committee
  23. press — to push
  24. press — newspapers

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