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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 120 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: mate · bass · key · capital · leaves · fall · tear · bat

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. key — the most important part
  3. fall — the season
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. mate — a friend
  7. mate — a partner
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — to rip
  12. bat — the animal
  13. bass — the fish
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. mate — to breed
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bass — low music
  19. capital — money
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. key — in music
  22. capital — a city
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. key — for a lock

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