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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. game — wild animals
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. clip — to cut
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. plane — a tool
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. bear — the animal
  9. clip — a video
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. bear — the animal
  14. stem — to come from
  15. pit — in a race
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. game — a match
  21. capital — a city
  22. clip — for paper
  23. pit — a hole
  24. plane — an aircraft

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