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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. pop — music
  3. fine — high quality
  4. snap — to click
  5. staff — a stick
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. pop — soda
  9. cap — of ice
  10. fine — all right
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — child
  14. cap — a hat
  15. capital — a city
  16. cap — a lid
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. staff — employees
  23. pop — to visit
  24. staff — employees

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