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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. suit — to fit
  6. suit — in cards
  7. pit — a hole
  8. capital — a city
  9. tube — a container
  10. field — farmland
  11. march — the month
  12. shower — rain
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. capital — money
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. field — for sport
  17. field — a subject
  18. pit — in a race
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. tube — the underground
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. march — the month
  23. shower — to wash
  24. march — music

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