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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · mug · capital · spring · bowl · net · last · rash

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. last — finally
  3. land — a country
  4. net — in sport
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. land — to come down
  7. spring — the season
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. net — for catching
  10. capital — money
  11. rash — hasty
  12. spring — of water
  13. mug — a face
  14. land — ground
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. mug — a cup
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. capital — a city
  19. spring — a coil
  20. net — after costs
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. last — to go on
  23. rash — a series
  24. last — final

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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