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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. board — a committee
  4. pass — a permit
  5. spell — letters
  6. spell — a short time
  7. face — to point toward
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. spell — magic
  10. face — to confront
  11. can — to be able to
  12. board — to get on
  13. shower — rain
  14. capital — a city
  15. sharp — clever
  16. face — part of the head
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. shower — to wash
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. can — a tin
  24. capital — money

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