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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. cap — a hat
  4. capital — a city
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. cap — a lid
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fine — high quality
  10. chest — of your body
  11. fine — all right
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. cap — of ice
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. spell — letters
  16. rock — music
  17. spell — magic
  18. spell — a short time
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. chest — a box
  23. capital — money
  24. lash — an eyelash

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