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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. present — there
  3. capital — money
  4. face — to point toward
  5. capital — a city
  6. present — the time now
  7. can — a tin
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. swing — in golf
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. can — to be able to
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. swing — music
  15. content — the amount
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. swing — to play on
  18. present — a gift
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. face — part of the head
  21. content — happy
  22. face — to confront
  23. row — to paddle
  24. can — a tin

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