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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. last — finally
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. cap — of ice
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. last — to go on
  7. bound — obliged
  8. bound — tied together
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. bound — certain
  11. bank — for money
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bank — of a river
  16. bear — the animal
  17. sharp — clever
  18. last — final
  19. bear — the animal
  20. cap — a lid
  21. capital — money
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. bank — for money
  24. cap — a hat

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