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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 120 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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. capital — a city
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — the arms race
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. rest — what's left
  7. mug — a cup
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. rock — music
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. mug — to rob
  12. rest — a break
  13. root — the cause
  14. mate — a partner
  15. rock — a stone
  16. mate — a friend
  17. root — of a plant
  18. root — of a word
  19. mug — a face
  20. fork — in a road
  21. rest — what's left
  22. race — humankind
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. mate — to breed

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