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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
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: mate · spell · club · capital · deal · spring · plane · cap

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. mate — a friend
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. mate — to breed
  5. cap — of ice
  6. capital — money
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. club — for dancing
  9. spell — letters
  10. spell — magic
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. spring — the season
  13. spell — a short time
  14. deal — to handle
  15. capital — a city
  16. mate — a partner
  17. cap — a hat
  18. spring — a coil
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. plane — a tool
  21. club — a group
  22. cap — a lid
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. spring — of water

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