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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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. sharp — exactly
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. board — to get on
  6. branch — a division
  7. board — a committee
  8. stock — goods
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. sharp — clever
  15. perch — the fish
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. stock — shares
  19. capital — a city
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. snap — to click
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. leaves — lets stay

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