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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. mark — a trace
  4. cue — a hint
  5. wind — moving air
  6. tube — the underground
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. cue — for pool
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. fine — high quality
  12. mark — a grade
  13. season — in sport
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. fine — all right
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a city
  19. tube — a container
  20. cue — a signal
  21. perch — the fish
  22. wind — moving air
  23. season — of the year
  24. perch — for a bird

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