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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. rash — hasty
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. sharp — clever
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. capital — money
  9. staff — employees
  10. mark — a grade
  11. rash — a series
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. staff — employees
  16. net — after costs
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. mark — a trace
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. staff — a stick
  23. net — for catching
  24. net — in sport

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