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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. cap — a hat
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. sharp — clever
  6. bulb — for light
  7. capital — money
  8. pit — a hole
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. pit — in a race
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. chair — a leader
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. content — happy
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. cap — of ice
  21. content — the amount
  22. bulb — for light
  23. capital — a city
  24. chair — a professorship

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