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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. swing — in golf
  5. last — to go on
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. swing — music
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. last — final
  14. capital — money
  15. rule — a law
  16. rule — government
  17. spring — a coil
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. last — finally
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — the season
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. swing — to play on
  24. leaves — to go away

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