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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  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. capital — money
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. root — of a plant
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. capital — a city
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. last — to go on
  8. land — ground
  9. cold — an illness
  10. last — finally
  11. root — of a word
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. scale — in music
  14. land — to come down
  15. swing — music
  16. scale — size or range
  17. swing — to play on
  18. land — a country
  19. last — final
  20. swing — in golf
  21. root — the cause
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. cold — not warm
  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