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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. mug — a face
  3. stand — to bear
  4. prune — to trim
  5. dip — to sink
  6. mug — to rob
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. mate — a partner
  9. prune — to trim
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. mate — to breed
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. march — music
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. file — a line of people
  17. march — the month
  18. mate — a friend
  19. march — the month
  20. mug — a cup
  21. capital — a city
  22. file — a tool
  23. file — a document
  24. prune — the fruit

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