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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. capital — a city
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. net — for catching
  6. shower — rain
  7. bulb — for light
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. shower — to wash
  11. perch — the fish
  12. mine — for digging
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — what's left
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bulb — for light
  19. net — after costs
  20. capital — money
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. rest — a break
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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