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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. prune — to trim
  3. lean — thin
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. capital — a city
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. deal — to handle
  8. capital — money
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. root — of a word
  11. field — a subject
  12. root — the cause
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — a tin
  16. game — wild animals
  17. root — of a plant
  18. field — farmland
  19. lean — to bend
  20. game — a match
  21. field — for sport
  22. prune — to trim
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. can — to be able to

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