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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: toast · game · mine · capital · snap · season

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. toast — bread
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. season — in sport
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to click
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. mine — for digging
  11. capital — money
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. season — of the year
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. game — a match
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. game — a kind of play

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