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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. cold — not warm
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. spell — a short time
  7. charge — electricity
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. object — a thing
  11. capital — money
  12. object — to protest
  13. spell — magic
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. face — part of the head
  17. cold — an illness
  18. spell — letters
  19. face — to confront
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. charge — in control
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. charge — a price
  24. object — an aim

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