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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's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. net — for catching
  3. object — a thing
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. net — after costs
  7. net — in sport
  8. capital — a city
  9. object — an aim
  10. capital — money
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. present — there
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. season — of the year
  16. object — to protest
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. present — a gift
  19. season — in sport
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. present — the time now
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — of the leg

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