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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. capital — money
  3. spring — the season
  4. spring — a coil
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. capital — a city
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. can — a tin
  13. can — to be able to
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. spring — of water
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. pop — to visit
  21. can — a tin
  22. branch — a division
  23. pop — soda
  24. straw — a straw man

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