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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. stock — shares
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. capital — money
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stock — goods
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. deal — to handle
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. root — the cause
  15. track — to keep track
  16. kid — child
  17. root — of a plant
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. wound — an injury
  20. root — of a word
  21. track — a song
  22. kid — to tease
  23. track — a path
  24. coach — a trainer

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