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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. rock — music
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. shower — rain
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — a thing
  8. season — in sport
  9. scale — in music
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. hand — help
  12. shower — to wash
  13. deal — to handle
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. season — of the year
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. capital — money
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. object — to protest
  21. capital — a city
  22. hand — in cards
  23. scale — size or range
  24. rock — a stone

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