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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. land — to come down
  4. present — the time now
  5. land — a country
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. board — a committee
  8. scale — size or range
  9. board — to get on
  10. present — a gift
  11. content — happy
  12. tear — from crying
  13. capital — money
  14. scale — in music
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. tear — to rip
  19. fork — in a road
  20. capital — a city
  21. tear — from crying
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. land — ground
  24. content — the amount

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