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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. staff — a stick
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. pass — a permit
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. staff — employees
  10. capital — a city
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. stock — goods
  17. staff — employees
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. capital — money
  20. stock — shares
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. branch — a division
  23. perch — the fish
  24. stock — a soup base

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