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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — money
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. cue — for pool
  7. land — a country
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. cue — a signal
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. cue — a hint
  14. land — ground
  15. last — finally
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. last — to go on
  18. land — to come down
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. last — final
  23. pass — a permit
  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