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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: cap · nail · spell · bowl · board · field · hide · capital

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. spell — letters
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. board — a committee
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. cap — a lid
  8. field — farmland
  9. capital — a city
  10. spell — a short time
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. capital — money
  13. cap — of ice
  14. spell — magic
  15. cap — a hat
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. field — a subject
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. board — to get on
  24. field — for sport

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