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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. fall — the season
  6. object — a thing
  7. capital — a city
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. pass — a permit
  10. race — the arms race
  11. fall — to drop
  12. foot — a measure
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. last — finally
  15. race — a contest
  16. object — to protest
  17. last — to go on
  18. season — in sport
  19. capital — money
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. race — humankind
  22. last — final
  23. object — an aim
  24. season — to add flavour

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