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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. file — a line of people
  3. capital — money
  4. can — to be able to
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. band — a music group
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. can — a tin
  9. cap — of ice
  10. mate — a friend
  11. cap — a lid
  12. mate — a partner
  13. cap — a hat
  14. capital — a city
  15. file — a document
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. can — a tin
  18. band — a ring
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. bat — the animal
  21. mate — to breed
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. file — a tool

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