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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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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: spring · rest · capital · bear · lash · dip · pitch · land

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bear — the animal
  3. dip — to sink
  4. pitch — completely
  5. rest — a break
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. spring — a coil
  10. rest — what's left
  11. land — to come down
  12. land — a country
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. bear — the animal
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. land — ground
  19. spring — the season
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. capital — money
  22. spring — of water
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. rest — what's left

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