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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 120 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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. capital — money
  3. bear — the animal
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. vault — a safe
  7. bulb — for light
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. mine — for digging
  10. capital — a city
  11. bear — the animal
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. march — the month
  15. bulb — for light
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. march — the month
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. ground — the earth
  20. ground — a position
  21. march — music
  22. ground — crushed
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. patient — a sick person

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