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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. root — the cause
  4. season — in sport
  5. root — of a word
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. club — for golf
  11. club — a group
  12. capital — a city
  13. press — to push
  14. root — of a plant
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. club — for dancing
  17. capital — money
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. press — a publisher
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. press — newspapers
  24. season — of the year

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