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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. capital — a city
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. cell — a phone
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. capital — money
  7. season — of the year
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. mug — to rob
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. row — to paddle
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cell — in biology
  15. row — a line
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. perch — the fish
  21. mug — a cup
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. mug — a face
  24. perch — for a bird

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