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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: hide · capital · game · rest · jam · kid · bowl · land

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. capital — money
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. capital — a city
  15. land — a country
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. rest — what's left
  18. game — wild animals
  19. game — a match
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. land — ground
  23. rest — a break
  24. land — to come down

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