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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. capital — money
  4. branch — a division
  5. cold — an illness
  6. roll — a cake
  7. fine — all right
  8. scale — in music
  9. suit — clothes
  10. roll — a list
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. cold — not warm
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. scale — size or range
  18. suit — in cards
  19. capital — a city
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. fine — high quality
  23. mine — for digging
  24. roll — on a roll

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