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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 124 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. capital — money
  3. ground — the earth
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. can — a tin
  7. pit — a hole
  8. staff — a stick
  9. pit — in a race
  10. ground — a position
  11. row — to paddle
  12. row — a line
  13. can — a tin
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — employees
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. capital — a city
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. season — in sport
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. can — to be able to
  23. season — of the year
  24. ground — crushed

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