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

Word bank: bear · rest · cell · bay · stick · capital · season · kid

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. capital — a city
  7. cell — in biology
  8. season — of the year
  9. season — in sport
  10. rest — what's left
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bear — the animal
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. bear — the animal
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. capital — money
  20. kid — child
  21. rest — a break
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. cell — a phone
  24. 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