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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 116 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. track — a song
  3. capital — money
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. season — in sport
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a path
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. fork — in a road
  16. dip — to sink
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. snap — to click
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. season — of the year
  22. deal — to handle
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. deal — an agreement

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