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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. lie — to recline
  6. capital — a city
  7. spell — magic
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. spell — a short time
  11. fine — high quality
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. cold — not warm
  16. board — to get on
  17. fine — all right
  18. capital — money
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. saw — the tool
  21. board — a committee
  22. cold — an illness
  23. saw — the tool
  24. spell — letters

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