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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: present · capital · coach · cap · march · bore · spring · rash

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. cap — a lid
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. bore — to drill
  5. march — the month
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. spring — of water
  8. present — a gift
  9. spring — a coil
  10. march — music
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. rash — a series
  13. capital — money
  14. march — the month
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. present — the time now
  17. cap — a hat
  18. capital — a city
  19. cap — of ice
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. spring — the season
  23. present — there
  24. bore — to tire

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