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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. capital — money
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. season — of the year
  7. tear — from crying
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. band — a music group
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. tear — to rip
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. band — a ring
  14. tear — from crying
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. rock — a stone
  20. rock — music
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. snap — to click
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. season — in sport

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