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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: rest · key · season · wound · cap · deal · capital · object

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. capital — a city
  3. key — in music
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. cap — a lid
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wound — an injury
  8. object — to protest
  9. rest — a break
  10. cap — of ice
  11. key — the most important part
  12. season — in sport
  13. capital — money
  14. cap — a hat
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. rest — what's left
  17. key — for a lock
  18. season — of the year
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. object — a thing
  22. wound — an injury
  23. deal — to handle
  24. deal — a big deal

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