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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. cap — of ice
  3. mark — a grade
  4. cap — a hat
  5. capital — money
  6. swing — in golf
  7. face — to confront
  8. season — in sport
  9. saw — the tool
  10. wound — an injury
  11. swing — to play on
  12. saw — the tool
  13. face — to point toward
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. swing — music
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. cap — a lid
  18. season — of the year
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. mark — a trace
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. capital — a city

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