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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 keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. season — of the year
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. season — in sport
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. drill — the tool
  10. track — a path
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. capital — a city
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. track — a song
  17. drill — a practice
  18. drill — army training
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. fall — to drop
  21. capital — money
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. safe — out of danger

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