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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. pit — in a race
  4. fine — all right
  5. cold — an illness
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. cold — not warm
  8. capital — money
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — a tin
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. perch — the fish
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. fine — high quality
  18. stand — to bear
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. wax — to grow
  23. pit — a hole
  24. can — to be able to

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