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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. season — of the year
  3. key — for a lock
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. squash — the sport
  7. file — a document
  8. rash — hasty
  9. key — in music
  10. sharp — clever
  11. rash — a series
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. squash — to crush
  14. key — the most important part
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. file — a tool
  19. file — a line of people
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. capital — money
  24. season — to add flavour

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