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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. branch — a division
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. capital — a city
  5. pit — a hole
  6. root — of a word
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. root — the cause
  9. root — of a plant
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. last — final
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. pit — in a race
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. capital — money
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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