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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. lean — thin
  3. capital — a city
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. season — of the year
  6. track — a path
  7. season — in sport
  8. track — to keep track
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — after costs
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. cold — an illness
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — money
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. track — a song
  21. lean — to bend
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. sharp — clever

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