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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. season — of the year
  3. spell — a short time
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. spell — magic
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. spring — the season
  9. rule — government
  10. capital — a city
  11. spring — of water
  12. mug — a cup
  13. mug — a face
  14. row — to paddle
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. season — in sport
  17. rule — a law
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. row — a line
  20. snap — to click
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. spell — letters
  23. spring — a coil
  24. row — a quarrel

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