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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. capital — a city
  3. lie — to recline
  4. swing — in golf
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. capital — money
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. swing — to play on
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. swing — music
  14. mine — for digging
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. wind — moving air
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — to come from
  23. wind — moving air
  24. safe — out of danger

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