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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. lean — thin
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. pop — music
  7. lean — to bend
  8. pop — to visit
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. cold — an illness
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. foot — a measure
  16. fine — all right
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. capital — a city
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. pop — soda
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. capital — money
  24. pass — a permit

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