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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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Word bank
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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. saw — the tool
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. stock — goods
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. saw — the tool
  15. stock — shares
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. season — in sport
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. mine — for digging
  24. season — of the year

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