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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. drill — a practice
  3. charge — in control
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. craft — boats
  6. charge — electricity
  7. march — the month
  8. charge — a price
  9. craft — a skill
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. cap — a lid
  13. cap — of ice
  14. face — to confront
  15. cap — a hat
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. march — music
  18. march — the month
  19. drill — the tool
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — money
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. face — to point toward
  24. drill — army training

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