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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. ball — a great time
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. face — to point toward
  8. land — ground
  9. capital — money
  10. ball — a dance
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. branch — a division
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to confront
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. stem — to come from
  18. toast — bread
  19. land — to come down
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. capital — a city
  23. land — a country
  24. ball — a round shape

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