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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  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. can — a tin
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. field — a subject
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — to be able to
  8. scale — size or range
  9. field — for sport
  10. capital — a city
  11. present — the time now
  12. capital — money
  13. scale — in music
  14. present — there
  15. wind — moving air
  16. land — to come down
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. present — a gift
  19. wind — moving air
  20. land — a country
  21. field — farmland
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. land — ground
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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