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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 116 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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. season — in sport
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. bound — certain
  5. drill — the tool
  6. capital — a city
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bound — tied together
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. drill — a practice
  12. bound — obliged
  13. season — of the year
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. wind — moving air
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. capital — money
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. drill — army training
  24. lie — to recline

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