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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. capital — a city
  3. field — a subject
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. sharp — clever
  6. face — part of the head
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. face — to point toward
  9. squash — the sport
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. field — farmland
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. face — to confront
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. capital — money
  24. field — for 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