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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fine — all right
  4. capital — money
  5. rash — hasty
  6. march — music
  7. march — the month
  8. spring — of water
  9. perch — the fish
  10. capital — a city
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. spring — a coil
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — a series
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. fine — high quality
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. march — the month
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. firm — decided
  23. spring — the season
  24. firm — steady

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