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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. capital — a city
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. march — music
  6. ball — a great time
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. tear — to rip
  9. tear — from crying
  10. ball — a dance
  11. staff — a stick
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — employees
  16. tear — from crying
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. march — the month
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. capital — money
  24. capital — a big letter

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