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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. club — for golf
  3. land — a country
  4. fine — all right
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. capital — money
  7. chair — a leader
  8. club — for dancing
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. stock — goods
  11. land — ground
  12. stand — to bear
  13. land — to come down
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. club — a group
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. kick — in football
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. fine — high quality
  24. stock — shares

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