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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: fork · pit · capital · staff · squash · face · spring · fall

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. spring — the season
  3. spring — a coil
  4. pit — in a race
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. staff — employees
  7. fall — to drop
  8. squash — the sport
  9. face — to confront
  10. fork — in a road
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. fall — the season
  13. squash — to crush
  14. staff — employees
  15. face — to point toward
  16. staff — a stick
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. capital — money
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. fall — to drop
  21. capital — a city
  22. spring — of water
  23. pit — a hole
  24. fork — to eat with

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