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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. pitch — completely
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. key — in music
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — the tool
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. key — for a lock
  12. band — a ring
  13. branch — a division
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. key — the most important part
  16. snap — to click
  17. band — a music group
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. season — in sport
  21. capital — money
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. branch — of a bank
  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