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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. lean — to bend
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. dip — to sink
  5. face — to confront
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cap — of ice
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. capital — money
  11. rash — hasty
  12. rash — a series
  13. clip — to cut
  14. face — to point toward
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. clip — a video
  19. lean — thin
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — for money
  22. clip — for paper
  23. capital — a city
  24. bank — of a river

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