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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. drill — army training
  3. perch — the fish
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. march — music
  7. drill — a practice
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. mark — a grade
  10. march — the month
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. capital — money
  15. march — the month
  16. mark — a trace
  17. stem — to come from
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. drill — the tool
  24. arm — part of the body

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