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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. prune — to trim
  3. swing — in golf
  4. swing — to play on
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. swing — music
  7. season — of the year
  8. rest — what's left
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. chest — a box
  11. chest — of your body
  12. track — to keep track
  13. rest — a break
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. prune — to trim
  16. chest — of your body
  17. rest — what's left
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. track — a path
  21. capital — money
  22. track — a song
  23. plane — a tool
  24. season — in sport

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