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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. suit — clothes
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — a phone
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. cap — of ice
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. land — a country
  9. land — to come down
  10. capital — money
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. suit — in cards
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. cap — a hat
  15. wake — a trail
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. fall — to drop
  18. cap — a lid
  19. suit — to fit
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. land — ground
  22. fall — to drop
  23. capital — a city
  24. fall — the season

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