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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 120 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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. pop — music
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to click
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. rule — government
  10. capital — a city
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. perch — the fish
  16. lean — thin
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. rule — a law
  20. capital — money
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. pop — soda
  23. pop — to visit
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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