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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. pass — a permit
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cap — a hat
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. charge — a price
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bat — the animal
  9. last — final
  10. bass — low music
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. sharp — clever
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. capital — money
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. cap — a lid
  17. bass — the fish
  18. last — to go on
  19. last — finally
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. charge — in control
  24. charge — electricity

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