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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. mate — to breed
  3. dip — to sink
  4. current — happening now
  5. capital — a city
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mate — a partner
  9. wound — an injury
  10. field — farmland
  11. staff — employees
  12. current — of water
  13. field — a subject
  14. capital — money
  15. current — electric
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. field — for sport
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. wound — an injury
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. racket — for tennis

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