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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. toast — bread
  3. pit — in a race
  4. row — to paddle
  5. capital — money
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. rock — music
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. branch — a division
  14. field — farmland
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. field — for sport
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. capital — a city
  21. field — a subject
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. rock — a stone
  24. pit — a hole

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