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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. capital — money
  3. spring — the season
  4. fall — to drop
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. wake — a trail
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. spring — of water
  12. fine — all right
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. fall — to drop
  16. capital — a city
  17. shower — to wash
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. fine — high quality
  20. shower — rain
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. spring — a coil
  24. racket — a loud noise

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