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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. squash — to crush
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. pop — soda
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. squash — the sport
  8. lean — thin
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. pass — a permit
  11. bulb — for light
  12. lean — to bend
  13. pop — music
  14. capital — a city
  15. pop — to visit
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — a video
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. clip — to cut
  22. chest — a box
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. pass — to succeed

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