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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  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. wave — with your hand
  2. capital — a city
  3. key — in music
  4. face — to point toward
  5. file — a document
  6. ball — a dance
  7. ball — a great time
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. mine — for digging
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. file — a tool
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. face — to confront
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. key — the most important part
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. file — a line of people
  21. key — for a lock
  22. face — part of the head
  23. mine — an explosive
  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