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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. key — in music
  3. last — final
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. capital — money
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. key — for a lock
  11. squash — to crush
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. key — the most important part
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. vault — a safe
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — finally

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