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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 120 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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. capital — a city
  3. content — the amount
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — happy
  7. march — the month
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hand — in cards
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. hand — help
  16. rule — a law
  17. rule — government
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. capital — money
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. march — the month
  24. march — music

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