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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. spell — a short time
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. capital — a city
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. spell — letters
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. suit — in cards
  14. season — of the year
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. suit — clothes
  17. season — in sport
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. suit — to fit
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. capital — money

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