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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. wake — a trail
  5. root — of a word
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. root — of a plant
  8. face — part of the head
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. face — to confront
  12. net — after costs
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. face — to point toward
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. net — in sport
  19. root — the cause
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. capital — a city
  23. net — for catching
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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