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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 second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. rest — what's left
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. capital — a city
  5. season — of the year
  6. rest — what's left
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. rest — a break
  9. game — wild animals
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. content — happy
  16. fork — in a road
  17. track — a song
  18. game — a match
  19. season — in sport
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. content — the amount
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. track — to keep track
  24. track — a path

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