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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. season — in sport
  3. staff — employees
  4. capital — a city
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. staff — employees
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. pop — soda
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. mug — to rob
  11. capital — money
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. mug — a cup
  14. spring — a coil
  15. rock — a stone
  16. staff — a stick
  17. rock — music
  18. spring — the season
  19. pop — music
  20. pop — to visit
  21. season — of the year
  22. mug — a face
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. spring — of water

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