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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. cap — a hat
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. fine — all right
  5. cue — a hint
  6. capital — a city
  7. wake — a trail
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. last — final
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cap — of ice
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. cue — for pool
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cue — a signal
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. last — to go on
  21. capital — money
  22. last — finally
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. trunk — of a car

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