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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  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. capital — money
  2. spring — of water
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. pit — a hole
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. perch — the fish
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. pit — in a race
  11. spring — a coil
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. spring — the season
  14. bound — certain
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bound — tied together
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. kick — in football
  20. capital — a city
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. bound — obliged
  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