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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. capital — a city
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. last — final
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. mug — to rob
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. track — to keep track
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. track — a path
  12. season — of the year
  13. season — in sport
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. mug — a cup
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. key — for a lock
  18. key — the most important part
  19. key — in music
  20. mug — a face
  21. branch — a division
  22. last — to go on
  23. last — finally
  24. track — a song

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