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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: capital · mug · fine · squash · field · snap · chest · spell

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. mug — to rob
  3. chest — a box
  4. chest — of your body
  5. capital — money
  6. fine — high quality
  7. capital — a city
  8. squash — the sport
  9. snap — to click
  10. mug — a face
  11. fine — all right
  12. spell — letters
  13. field — for sport
  14. chest — of your body
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. spell — a short time
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. field — farmland
  19. squash — to crush
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. mug — a cup
  23. spell — magic
  24. squash — the vegetable

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