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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. march — the month
  4. track — a path
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. present — the time now
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. march — music
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. track — a song
  13. capital — money
  14. mark — a trace
  15. present — there
  16. mark — a grade
  17. track — to keep track
  18. march — the month
  19. wind — moving air
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. present — a gift
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. toast — bread
  24. wind — moving air

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