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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 116 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: bat · wake · cell · bay · capital · wind

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wake — a trail
  3. bat — the animal
  4. cell — in biology
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. cell — a phone
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. capital — money
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. cell — in a prison

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