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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: field · rest · straw · capital · pass · leaves

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. rest — a break
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. field — farmland
  7. capital — a city
  8. field — for sport
  9. rest — what's left
  10. capital — money
  11. pass — a permit
  12. field — a subject
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. rest — what's left
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. straw — dry grass

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