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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. pop — to visit
  3. cap — of ice
  4. capital — a city
  5. face — to point toward
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. face — to confront
  13. tear — from crying
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pop — soda
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. cap — a lid
  18. tear — to rip
  19. capital — money
  20. face — part of the head
  21. cap — a hat
  22. pop — music
  23. tear — from crying
  24. lie — to recline

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