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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. key — the most important part
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. pop — soda
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. key — for a lock
  7. key — in music
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. season — in sport
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. capital — money
  14. pop — music
  15. capital — a city
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. sharp — clever
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. season — of the year
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. season — to add flavour

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