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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. spell — a short time
  4. branch — a division
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — a coil
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. spell — letters
  9. march — the month
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. board — a committee
  14. capital — a city
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. board — to get on
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. spring — of water
  22. march — the month
  23. march — music
  24. capital — money

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