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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — the arms race
  5. march — the month
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. march — the month
  8. march — music
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — for sport
  11. charge — in control
  12. prune — to trim
  13. wound — an injury
  14. charge — electricity
  15. capital — money
  16. field — farmland
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. race — humankind
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. charge — a price
  21. prune — to trim
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. capital — a city
  24. cabinet — ministers

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