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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  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. capital — money
  2. march — the month
  3. cap — of ice
  4. cap — a lid
  5. saw — the tool
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. cap — a hat
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. capital — a city
  12. prune — to trim
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. march — the month
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. present — the time now
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. march — music
  21. present — a gift
  22. mine — for digging
  23. present — there
  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