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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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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. cap — a hat
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. fine — all right
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. cap — a lid
  9. capital — a city
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. bark — to shout
  12. saw — the tool
  13. cap — of ice
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. fine — high quality
  17. kid — to tease
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. saw — the tool
  21. capital — money
  22. branch — a division
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. coach — a trainer

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