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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 124 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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. chair — a leader
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. capital — a city
  8. fall — the season
  9. pit — a hole
  10. pit — in a race
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. capital — money
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fork — in a road
  16. present — there
  17. prune — to trim
  18. fall — to drop
  19. prune — to trim
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. present — the time now
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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