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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. saw — the tool
  5. mate — a friend
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. spring — of water
  8. object — to protest
  9. object — an aim
  10. spring — the season
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. object — a thing
  13. wound — an injury
  14. mate — to breed
  15. capital — a city
  16. spring — a coil
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. stand — to bear
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. saw — the tool
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. wound — an injury
  24. mate — a partner

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