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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. season — of the year
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. season — in sport
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. tear — from crying
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mug — a cup
  11. wind — moving air
  12. capital — money
  13. tear — to rip
  14. mug — a face
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. capital — a city
  18. ground — the earth
  19. fine — high quality
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — crushed
  22. tear — from crying
  23. fine — all right
  24. hide — animal skin

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