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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. club — for golf
  3. mate — a friend
  4. spell — magic
  5. content — the amount
  6. club — a group
  7. spell — a short time
  8. mug — to rob
  9. pass — a permit
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — rain
  15. club — for dancing
  16. mug — a cup
  17. spell — letters
  18. mate — a partner
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. content — happy
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. capital — money
  23. mug — a face
  24. mate — to breed

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