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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. press — a publisher
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. firm — decided
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. capital — a city
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. bulb — for light
  9. clip — for paper
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. capital — money
  12. suit — in cards
  13. field — for sport
  14. suit — clothes
  15. firm — a company
  16. clip — to cut
  17. suit — to fit
  18. press — to push
  19. clip — a video
  20. field — a subject
  21. firm — steady
  22. press — newspapers
  23. field — farmland
  24. bulb — for light

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