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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. capital — a city
  6. last — finally
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. season — of the year
  9. last — to go on
  10. tube — the underground
  11. fine — high quality
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bark — to shout
  14. last — final
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. capital — money
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. pass — a permit
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. tube — a container
  23. fine — all right
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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