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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. present — a gift
  5. present — there
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. march — music
  8. shower — rain
  9. shower — to wash
  10. capital — money
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. march — the month
  13. firm — a company
  14. firm — steady
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. pop — to visit
  18. present — the time now
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. pop — soda
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. pop — music
  23. firm — decided
  24. march — the month

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