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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: field · pop · capital · row · nail · cap · fall · bay

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — the season
  7. fall — to drop
  8. capital — a city
  9. cap — a hat
  10. row — a line
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. cap — of ice
  13. field — farmland
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. pop — to visit
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. pop — soda
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. row — to paddle
  20. field — a subject
  21. cap — a lid
  22. pop — music
  23. capital — money
  24. field — for sport

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