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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. mate — a partner
  4. season — in sport
  5. capital — a city
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. branch — a division
  8. field — for sport
  9. capital — money
  10. present — there
  11. field — a subject
  12. firm — decided
  13. present — the time now
  14. field — farmland
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. mate — a friend
  17. firm — a company
  18. firm — steady
  19. present — a gift
  20. wind — moving air
  21. season — of the year
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. mate — to breed
  24. season — to add flavour

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