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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  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. capital — a big letter
  2. chest — of your body
  3. prune — to trim
  4. capital — a city
  5. chest — of your body
  6. prune — to trim
  7. cue — for pool
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. bulb — for light
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. chest — a box
  17. net — after costs
  18. cue — a hint
  19. bulb — for light
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — in sport
  22. cue — a signal
  23. plane — a tool
  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