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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cap — a hat
  4. face — part of the head
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. face — to point toward
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. chest — of your body
  9. rash — a series
  10. object — to protest
  11. season — of the year
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. face — to confront
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. object — a thing
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. chest — a box
  18. cap — a lid
  19. chest — of your body
  20. object — an aim
  21. pound — a weight
  22. season — in sport
  23. capital — a city
  24. rash — hasty

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