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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. mate — to breed
  3. rash — hasty
  4. march — the month
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. spring — the season
  10. rash — a series
  11. mate — a friend
  12. mate — a partner
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. spring — a coil
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. march — music
  23. spring — of water
  24. march — the month

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