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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 best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — of ice
  3. capital — a city
  4. stock — goods
  5. land — to come down
  6. hand — in cards
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. cap — a lid
  13. stock — shares
  14. capital — money
  15. land — a country
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. scale — in music
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. land — ground
  22. stand — to bear
  23. scale — size or range
  24. hand — help

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