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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 116 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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — money
  4. suit — to fit
  5. lean — to bend
  6. suit — in cards
  7. wind — moving air
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. pound — a weight
  13. suit — clothes
  14. content — happy
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. ball — a great time
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. content — the amount
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. wind — moving air
  23. lean — thin
  24. capital — a big letter

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