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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tear — to rip
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. foot — a measure
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. snap — to click
  9. tube — a container
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. tube — the underground
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. capital — a city

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