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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. prune — to trim
  4. cap — a lid
  5. lean — to bend
  6. lean — thin
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. spring — of water
  9. key — in music
  10. mark — a grade
  11. cap — of ice
  12. game — wild animals
  13. prune — to trim
  14. key — for a lock
  15. cap — a hat
  16. mark — a trace
  17. capital — a city
  18. capital — money
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spring — the season
  23. key — the most important part
  24. game — a match

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