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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. track — a path
  3. board — a committee
  4. firm — decided
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. capital — money
  7. cell — a phone
  8. board — to get on
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. track — to keep track
  11. capital — a city
  12. firm — a company
  13. land — a country
  14. kid — to tease
  15. kid — child
  16. land — to come down
  17. cell — in biology
  18. track — a song
  19. cap — of ice
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. firm — steady
  22. land — ground
  23. cap — a hat
  24. cell — in a prison

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