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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. spell — letters
  5. rest — a break
  6. spell — a short time
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. capital — a city
  9. rest — what's left
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wound — an injury
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. spell — magic
  18. wound — an injury
  19. mate — a partner
  20. rest — what's left
  21. mate — to breed
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. mate — a friend
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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