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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 116 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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. track — a path
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. track — to keep track
  6. drill — the tool
  7. tear — to rip
  8. staff — a stick
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. capital — money
  11. drill — army training
  12. staff — employees
  13. capital — a city
  14. tear — from crying
  15. track — a song
  16. staff — employees
  17. drill — a practice
  18. tear — from crying

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