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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. hand — help
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. march — the month
  8. rash — hasty
  9. plane — a tool
  10. field — a subject
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. deal — to handle
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. field — farmland
  16. hand — in cards
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. rash — a series
  19. field — for sport
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. march — the month
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. march — music
  24. capital — a city

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