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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 120 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: wake · capital · sharp · pass · face · fan

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. face — part of the head
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. capital — a city
  7. wake — a trail
  8. sharp — clever
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. face — to confront
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. face — to point toward
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. pass — a permit
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. capital — a big letter

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