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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. season — in sport
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. saw — the tool
  6. wound — an injury
  7. stock — goods
  8. season — of the year
  9. capital — money
  10. stock — shares
  11. capital — a city
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. wound — an injury
  19. scale — in music
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. scale — size or range
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. toast — bread
  24. saw — the tool

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