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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. capital — a city
  4. bulb — for light
  5. board — a committee
  6. capital — money
  7. row — to paddle
  8. face — to point toward
  9. face — part of the head
  10. row — a line
  11. face — to confront
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. board — to get on
  14. game — a match
  15. track — a path
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. track — to keep track
  19. bulb — for light
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. game — wild animals

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