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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. saw — the tool
  7. season — of the year
  8. bear — the animal
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. capital — money
  11. bear — the animal
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. season — in sport
  14. mine — for digging
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. cue — for pool
  17. lie — to recline
  18. cue — a signal
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. cue — a hint
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. saw — the 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